Of Heart's Locks and Heart's Keys
by Sylph Dancer
Summary: Lock and Key Trilogy #2: Their fall left them trapped within a prison designed to murder them and a traitor in their midst. Mythical beings and stories from around the world come to life within the maze, thirsty for their blood. The odds are stacked against them, and there is no escaping Labyrinth without paying the price. Amuto, Rimahiko, Kutau, Yairi, Tadeshiko.
1. Prologue: The Heart's Lock!

_Hello, hello! This is Sylph Dancer introducing the new sequel to Of Final Adventures and Last Years. Please do not read this until you have read the first in the Lock and Key Trilogy, Of Final Adventures and Last Years. Read and review, please!_

_ All rights go to Peach-Pit._

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**Prologue**

They say that hope is for fools.

People can't change. It's in our nature. Once a fool, always a fool, and nothing can make that go away. Sooner or later, no matter what you believe, you will come to realize that in this world, in this age of humans, nobody believes the best of what others can be, and so no one chooses to be the best they can be.

They're not wrong. All one would have to do is study our short, blazing history. People lie, cheat, murder and steal. That's how it's always been, regardless of how insistent mankind is upon change. Maybe you can become a better person, but you can never change your deepest nature. No human can. And humans are liars, thieves and murderers. In the end, we are either faithless or we lie to ourselves so we can believe that maybe things can change.

So what would be the point in hoping?

None, one would think. A liar may feel guilty, but they will eventually let more lies spill from their mouths. A murderer could hold such deep remorse, but inevitably, that remorse would do absolutely nothing to take back what they have done. A thief will steal, and then steal again.

But think: reading this, don't you feel a bit... depressed? Empty? Surely, it's not happy, but it can't really be true, at least not entirely, right? There are good people out there. People who do their best in life, who regret their actions and feel guilty.

After all, we still dream.

The truth is, maybe people can't change, and maybe they can. But even if humanity has the capacity for great evil, is it not possible that we have the capacity for great good? Because somewhere, somehow, there has to be hope. And hope does seem to change things. It gives us the power to keep standing when things are hard. We have to keep going, because we have to believe that things will get better. Otherwise we fall, and it hurts so much to fall and stay on the ground. We have to stand up again. Forgiveness is what makes us strong.

We need to believe that the wars and the famine and the sorrow will end. We need to have faith that maybe, just maybe, we can all grow up as a whole, even if it takes us what may feel like an endless time. We need to hope.

This is a story of ten simple human beings learning to forgive. This is a story of the darkness and the light, of forces that should be balanced, neutral. Of deepest sorrows and bright happiness. From numb, drugged tears to bone-deep love, from supernatural beings to nymphs to shape-shifters to beings older that time itself. This is a story of truth and lies, betrayal and trust, promises and bonds. This is the story of how everything fell apart, and how in the end, there was still hope.

This is _our_ story.

And it begins in the Road of Stars…

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	2. In Which Amu Possesses People and Shit!

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_

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**Amu  
**

I was falling.

Glittering particles swirled past me as I tumbled through the endless vortex of stars. I couldn't even think as points of kaleidoscopic light enveloped my body and reflected in the whites of my eyes.

With a soft thump, I landed on the surface of the Road of Stars, which vibrated mysteriously underneath me. From all around me, a soft, beautiful melody that echoed faintly, just quiet enough so that I could hear a song ringing through the Road, but I couldn't truly hear the tune. A strange, ancient breeze, like a wind that had been trapped here for eons, whispered in my ears and curled around my hair.

I stood shakily, breathing hard. Here was the mystic place of wonder where darkness did not exist and the past, present and future existed as one. This was where my destiny was seated, and this was where I was going to take it back. However…

A distant sound rippled through the Road of Stars, echoing from somewhere above me, and I jumped, looking above.

"What am I supposed to do?" I wondered aloud.

I had the Humpty—no, the Heart's Lock and the Heart's Key. Whoever that man was, he hadn't followed me—I thought. But I had no guardian characters, no friends, no allies, and no idea what exactly what I had to do to reverse time, bring my friends back, defeat a stranger I knew nothing about, and my entire decision to do so had been completely spur-of-the-moment, so of course I was completely unprepared. Whatever I had to do, and how I was going to do it, I was going to have to figure out myself.

"Amu Hinamori?"

I whirled around, my heart pounding in my ears. There stood Akira Amakawa, a quizzical expression on her face. I nearly screamed, stumbling backwards.

"Stay away from me!" I shouted,

An almost imperceptible flash of shock and hurt crossed her face. Then realization. "Amu, it's me. It's really me." I glowered at her, and she exhaled softly, her eyes growing sad. "It is, I promise."

I watched her warily as she moved closer, holding out a hand for me to take. I glared at her, then took it.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"What are you?" I shot back.

Akira closed her eyes. "I've been here for a long time, Amu. Since the night I first truly met you."

"What do you mean? We've talked to each other since, you couldn't have been."

She looked away. "The night we first met, I was ambushed by a man; a supernatural, I think. He had—"

"One gold eye and one silver eye," I whispered.

"Yes." Her gaze grew distant. "He took my body."

"What?"

"I'm still not quite sure how it happened. One moment, his eyes were gold and silver, and then they were completely black. My body sort of… seized up, and then I found myself here. When I tried to return—and I did make my way back, I discovered I was neither alive nor dead. I'm separated from my body, but I am not dead. Just as the life energies, or what makes up a soul, is within that of a living creature, my soul has been ripped from my physical body and cast aside for a different soul to take its place …"

"How?" I asked with difficulty.

"I don't know. I just returned here, and this is where I've been since, just… waiting. Reliving old memories. Trying to discover more about who my killer was, why he did it. Trying to keep up with your lives. But enough of my tragedies. Why are you here?"

I looked away. "My friends… the man you saw…"

"Did he hurt them?" She asked, her eyes widening in alarm. "And you escaped?"

"He—your body…" I shuddered. "I—I think he used your body. He took your body, and then he tricked us, he infiltrated Easter… I think…"

Akira looked at me for a moment, scanning my face. "And the others?"

"He—the Lock and Key—they broke. He broke them with some sort of laser. And… my friends collapsed. And all our guardian characters—they went back into their eggs and they…" I bit back a sob.

I told her everything then; every single thing in the past year that had happened,every odd event. On my chest, the Lock and Key throbbed, and I had an overwhelming urge to show them to her. "I think—I think I survived because of these." I showed her the Heart's Lock and Heart's Key. "I had a dream… O Shinge, the demon—no, spirit, she gave them to me, she told me I needed them, and to keep it a secret until the time was right." I took a deep breath. "And I guess that time is now. She told me I had a quest. A destiny."

She nodded. "I would suppose it would be for the same reason you are here. To save your friends. Doing so will doubtless change the course of history. I will tell you what I know of this man."

She could discern no name, no true gender other than from appearance; although he seemed man, he could be anything. From what she had discovered, he was not a human, a demon, a spirit, a god, a vampire, a werewolf, a fairy, an elf, a shape-shifter, an esper, an alien, an important mythological figure, he was in no way connected to O Shinge, and he was most likely not even mortal.

He had no history—he seemed to have been erased completely from the time stream. He could take the bodies and forms of others, but he might as well have simply appeared one day and started stealing other's bodies.

He had not appeared to cause even the slightest havoc before this certain event; she had found him in the bodies of countless others, including a nurse aiding the birth of a child, a young boy eating dirt, a vampire prostitute, a gay man being assaulted by a feminine blonde boy, a businessman's baby daughter, a warlock with an obsession for rainbow glitter, and so on.

He had left each of his hosts alive, simply stealing the bodies and letting them return to them later, aware of the memories he had created in their place but unaware that they had technically not been present when they were being made.

"They all could have died," She confirmed. "But because he is alive, he keeps the link between their life sources from dissolving. If he was a spirit, the connection would have been severed. But everywhere I have checked, all are living."

"Is he a soul, then?" I asked.

"I don't believe that is possible, because he has a tangible form—you say he pressed a button to activate this laser?"

"Yes," I said, then stiffened. "But, Akira, he left your body. It… melted off of him. He didn't stay in your body. That's how I know. Because I brushed by him."

There was silence, the ancient song of the Road of Stars echoing around us.

"Then I am dead," She said softly. "And now I cannot go back."

I looked at her, unable to find words to say. She had lost everything, just as I had, and yet it seemed that while that thing had tried to kill us because we held some important purpose, he had purposely killed her simply to show off that he had bested us. He could have simply pressed the button and left her body in whatever way didn't kill her, escaping without a single hint of guilt; Akira, who would have those memories, would believe she had done it on purpose, and she would be blamed. No one would know the wiser. I would not still be alive to foil his plans.

But he didn't.

And now one more person was dead for it.

"I do not believe your friends are dead," She said gently. "Perhaps they are in a sort of comatoseness. If they were dead, you would be aware of their presence, would you not?"

"Why?" My brow furrowed. "They might not have come to the Road of Stars. They could be lingering somewhere else."

"Perhaps," She agreed. "But your destinies are still intertwined, are they not? Then, your souls are most likely intertwined. You already have an increased sensitivity towards what your friends feel; that is part of why you are such good friends. If your souls are indeed bound, as I believe they could only be, they would still live. You can still save them."

"But what if I do something wrong?" I whispered. "I have to save them, and maybe even defeat this person—or thing, or whatever it is—I might have to fight it. I'm literally battling the unknown. What if I ruin everything? I'm not perfect, I make so many mistakes. This is probably the biggest decision of my life. What if I mess up? What if I make the wrong choice, and it turns out to be the wrong one?"

"It never hurts to have a backup," She said contemplatively. "You must try your best to achieve your goals, but you must not stay fixated on one thing. If what you want is nothing more than revenge, then if your plan failed, you would find it could be too late to do anything at all. However, if you planned to save your friends along with the lives of millions, you may have to sacrifice the life of your friends for the lives of a billion in order to achieve one of the two goals instead of none."

I nodded warily, and she smiled sadly. "None what that being and my husband told you were falsehoods, excepting that destroying the Humpty Lock and Dumpty Key would solve your problems. Your destinies are still intertwined. But, Amu... remember this… you were chosen for a reason. You were a worthy being to wield such power as that of the Road of Stars, and you are worthy to bear the Humpty Lock and the Dumpty Key, even if you must do so on your own at the moment."

"But if I make a mistake?" I whispered. "The Lock and Key are so important. I may ruin everything."

"I have faith in you. But you must also have faith in yourself to be able to achieve what seems impossible. Do not be half-hearted in your efforts during this quest. Whatever great things you do, you must do them with pride. What is the saying…? You miss every chance you do not take. People often regret not doing a thing more than regretting doing something wrong."

"Really?"

"Think of it like love. In many love triangles, you find that there is one whom falls in love with someone, while another does not try to speak up before she does so. How do I say this…. If the best friend had spoken up before, if they had not hesitated to do so, they would have truly stood a chance. But they did not."

"I see." I closed my eyes, breathing deeply. "You… you're right. I can't be afraid. I was born to do this."

Where to start? Do I simply go back to the point in time when my friends were taken away from them and defeat whoever that man was? Do I follow the man around until I know enough about him and then save my friends?

I closed my eyes. The Road of Stars had always taken me where I needed to go, whether or not I knew why. I could either accept this truth and try to figure out what I needed to do; or I could do this on my own.

I looked back at Akira. She watched me, a sad smile on her face. For a moment, I wanted to beg her to come with me. Something told me this was one journey I had to take alone.

At my neck, the Heart's Lock and Key still glittered brightly. I lifted a hand to my chest, gripping the last physical connection I had to my old life. Then I stepped off the edge of the Road of Stars and let myself plunge down into the swirling stars.

* * *

When I came back to consciousness, I realized something was wrong the second I realized I was floating around in mid-air.

Something people do not always comprehend is the familiarity in which you feel within your own body. You become accustomed to your limits, to what you can and can't do. Most people handle their bodies with ease, or at least have become used to your own physical self.

And so, when I had realized I had woken up without a body at all, I couldn't help but feel disoriented.

An odd sort of gasp came from my throat as I found myself standing abruptly in a small bedroom. My entire body was still there, but now it was slightly transparent, as if I were some ghost.

I was in a bedroom. Not any bedroom I was familiar with other than some vague sense of remembrance and a weird urge to play hide-and-seek. A flash of movement caught my gaze, and I turned to find myself staring at a man in the bed beneath me. It was Tsukasa Amakawa.

Wide, soft violet eyes stared right through me. I flipped out, suddenly desperate to see my reflection, and watched, startled, as the dazed man slipped off the bed and walked easily over to the mirror, looking at his face calmly.

The gears in my head began turning. _"Sleep,"_ I ordered aloud.

And he did, hitting his forehead on the countertop as he collapsed in a heap on the floor and snoring softly. I blinked, then smiled (and felt a bit guilty that I made him hit his head.) _"Wake up?"_

He groaned and sat up, rubbing his forehead.

_"This is kind of cool,"_ I said, a breathless sort of laugh bubbling out of my throat.

"This is kind of cool," Tsukasa repeated, a slight laugh coming from his throat.

_"Whoa."_

"Whoa."

_"This is…."_

"This is…"

I stopped, now trying to keep quiet, all my thoughts inside my head. Somehow, impossibly, I had become a spirit with the ability to influence everything around me.

"Brother?" The door opened, and I started, causing Tsukasa to spazz out slightly. It was a woman with wavy brown hair pulled back from her forehead, adorned in a simple cream dress with a white cover-up. A vague memory itched at the back of my memory, and I swallowed hard. The woman was Tadase's mother. "Is everything all right?"

"Y—Yes!" I winced as his voice cracked oddly, gripping the sides of the mirror tightly. She blinked, her brow furrowing in confusion. Apparently I couldn't control her as well.

"… Ah. All right then." Still looking at Tsukasa oddly (I felt an odd pang, wondering if he'd become used to her giving him such looks) and then left, shutting the door softly behind her.

I collapsed back onto the bed, breathing hard. I could not honestly say what the heck I was doing here or why. Was I supposed to be here? Why could I control just Tsukasa? Out of billions of people on the face of the Earth, and I ended up in this place? Why?

"Oji-shan?" A tiny, slightly lisping voice asked curiously. I turned to see a miniscule little boy with soft, platinum blonde hair, an incredibly innocent smile, and a round, pudgy figure. It was Tadase.

All the air seemed to go out of my lungs. There was Tadase as a toddler, smiling brightly up at me, all rosy cheeks and baby fat, his neatly combed blonde hair slightly mussed and his clothes dirty, as if he'd been crawling around.

A little choked sound came from my throat. I watched with wide eyes as Tadase waddled towards me, smiling happily as he hugged my legs. "Oji-shan is awake! Oji-shan, come pway wif meeee!"

"In—in a minute, little one," I whispered, my voice hoarse through Tsukasa's mouth. "Just—let me get dressed."

"Otay!" He plodded out.

I took deep, shuddering breaths as I sunk back down onto the bed. Tsukasa stood there idly (which was admittedly a bit creepy.) The sight of Tadase had struck something deep inside me—I supposed that I had expected that I would not see them until I saved him along with my other friends, if I managed to save them at all.

Was I in a memory? If I was, it wasn't anything like how I was used to—I was tangible, and I couldn't actually change or alter what happened—I was just there, along for the ride. In the past, you could change things. Like a movie; the movie on a DVD I couldn't change, but as an actor during the filming, I was truly there to change things up. And if I wasn't in a memory, then that had to mean I was at least in the past, if that made any sense, and able to control someone else's body. That was the only difference I could detect.

Which meant that if I wasn't in someone's memory, but in the past, I could alter it.

Was that what I was here to do? Alter the past? Certainly by changing the past, I would change the present (Wait, is it the future now? God, it's so confusing). But if that was true, what exactly was I supposed to alter? How was I supposed to know what I had to change and what I didn't? If I went out and got a snack, I might do something horrible like cause a murder in the future. But what was I here to do, then, if otherwise could create chaos or something?

An odd throbbing sensation drew my gaze to my chest. There, glowing very faintly in the dark room beneath my shirt, were the Heart's Lock and Heart's Key. I looked around the room, and spotted something I recognized right away: Ikuto's father's violin. Without thinking, I grabbed it, suddenly sure I was going to need it.

"Oji-shaaaaan!" Tadase popped back into the room, waddling over to me and tugging on my pant leg. "Onii-tan an' Utau-nee-chan are coming here to live wif ush! Come onnnnn!" He stuck his bottom lip out, giving me a petulant expression, and tugged harder.

I couldn't help but smile, a terrible sort of pressure burning my throat as he tugged me out the door, still holding the violin.

There, at the end of the long hallway, stood Tadase's mother, along with Ikuto and Utau. The sight of them brought not only stifled tears to my eyes but recognition.

I remember this, I realized. This was something I'd seen before—I'd just been watching a memory, rather than actually being in the past. This was when Ikuto's father had first left them, and they'd come to live with Tadase's family.

Ikuto stood looking straight forward with an empty expression on his face. His unruly, midnight blue hair was still untameable and his height unusually tall even at a young age, I noticed sadly. Even now, he seemed so sad. Utau would've looked adorable in her little pig-tails and her thumb in her mouth if her eyes hadn't been so fresh with distrust and she had smiled. Seeing the two of them made my chest throb and my eyes burn.

"Onii-tan!" Tadase hurtled towards the two, tackling Ikuto's legs, full of gleeful laughter. A slight smile crinkled Ikuto's eyes, and for a moment Utau seemed to relax, before Tadase's mom spoke. Then that flash was gone.

"From now on, Utau-chan and Ikuto are going to live with us," Tadase's mother said, an odd look crossing her eyes: pity. I felt another twinge; this time I recognized it as exasperation and annoyance. Hmm. "I pity you two kids… Tadase, be nice to them, okay?"

"Mmm-hmm!" Tadase gripped Ikuto's legs tighter. "Onii-tan, let's pway!"

"Thank you for letting us stay here," Ikuto said quietly, bowing with Utau.

"Of course," Tadase's mother nodded, her voice taking on the barest hint of something almost intedetectable that tugged at my annoyance again. "Why don't you two go play?"

Tadase tugged Ikuto and Utau out into the garden, still laughing happily. "Pway-time, pway-time! Onee-chan, wook at da wittle birdies!"

As Tadase dragged Utau away to look at a number of rather startled birds, Ikuto sat back and watched on the side of the house.

"Follow them, please," I whispered, and Tsukasa did, seating himself near Ikuto, who paid no notice.

"Ah—brother, is that the violin?" Tadase's mother appeared, picking it up off the ground. "It shouldn't be lying around or be in the hands of the children, but… I don't know where to put this violin. Can you show me where it goes?"

I looked up at her, ready to help by doing whatever the weird command-thing was, when an odd sort of flicker came over me. The Lock and Key thrummed softly on my chest, the illusion cleared, and suddenly I could see the man who took my friends away.

There he was, smiling at me, a perfect picture of innocence. It seemed he did not even realize I could see right through the illusion he had cast—or had he taken Tadase's mother's body from her?

That's what he was doing, I guessed. He was altering the past for whatever reason. It affected something important in the future. But I had to change it back. I was a part of this event, and I had to make sure it happened just as it was supposed to happen.

"Just let me take it, and I'll put it where it goes," I said, forcing calm into my voice.

The man frowned. "But…"

"Just let me," I insisted. "You're already working so hard, sister dear."

I held my breath, expecting her—him?—to argue. The important event was so close; he had to mess it up. I couldn't let him, but if I altered too much of the time stream…

"Mizue!" A voice barked, and the man jumped. The illusion took hold once more. Tadase's grandmother appeared at her shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"The—the violin—" She stammered.

"I can take care of it," I said cheerfully, removing the violin from her grasp.

"Good. Come along, Mizue, we need to take care of lunch."

"Y—Yes, Mother."

I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding, and then turned back to Ikuto. He was still watching Tadase and Utau, who stood holding hands, watching the birds flutter curiously at them. His expression was sad, almost pitiful…

But Ikuto didn't want to be pitied, did he?

A familiar surge of warmth rolled over my skin. "You're not pitiful at all," I blurted before I could stop myself, and Tsukasa repeated the words.

Ikuto blinked, then turned to me, a questioning look on his face. I stared right back, hesitating. Should I really change the past?

Whatever we do, we do it with pride.

"Look at it this way," I said calmly, confidence slowly seeping through me. "Everyone, at some time in their lives, has to leave their parents and be independent. It could happen early in life or later."

The screen slid open, and Tsukasa's mother slipped out. "Oh, Tsukasa." Her eyes flickered between the two of us, and I felt frantic. I had to get her away from him.

"To hang out with these little kids…" My chest pulsed, and the illusion slipped away. "Don't you think that's a little pathetic?" She asked.

His eyes glittered with spite and malice. Is this what Tadase's mother truly felt, or is this man making her feel this way?

"Really?" It came out as a squeak. Then I cleared my throat and continued, searching desperately for something to say. "'Even though I'm taking good care of them, I can't smile'," I said the first thing that popped into my head. I stopped, gauging his reaction. The illusion flickered back to life; her face was one of surprise and shame. "'They're not innocent or charming at all'… You're thinking something like that, aren't you, sister?" Tsukasa asked quietly.

"What… What… What are you saying?" She whirled around, clearly flustered. "I—I need to go make lunch. Watch over them, will you?"

I swallowed hard as I stared after her. Was I really supposed to do that? Say those things? I turned back to Ikuto, who was gazing at me with a look of wonder. "…You're thinking, 'How did he know what she was thinking?', right?" I told him. "'I haven't met a grown-up who says such things before." Ikuto nodded, and I smiled. "That's because I'm not a grown-up."

Ikuto looked at me, his eyes wide.

Tadase came running up to us, tackling Ikuto's legs. "Onii-tan! Come play with us!"

As Tadase dragged Ikuto away, I watched them go; now, Tadase and Utau had both glomped him and were arguing. I couldn't help but smile; my eyes began to burn again. Resting on my chest, the Lock and Key pulsed strangely. The hair on my skin rose, and I sucked in a breath.

As Ikuto gently pried the both of them off of his legs, he started and bent down, plucking something from the ground beneath him as Tadase and Utau tottered off, still arguing. "… What is this?" I heard him mutter. "A black egg?"

Before I could stop myself, I had stood, violin in hand, racing over to him and calling out, "Hey, Ikuto!"

He started, and I continued to approach him, holding out the violin. His brow furrowed as he took it from me. "What's this?"

"Your father's violin," I told him, unable to stop the slightly jumbled flow that was pouring out of mine (and now poor Tsukasa's) mouth. "I got it from your mother at the hospital. I'm sure your father would have wanted you to have this."

Ikuto looked away; his midnight blue eyes had grown dark and resentful. ".. I don't care about what my father wants," He said quietly. "He made my mother and Utau unhappy."

"Hmm…" I paused for a moment. He was right, I thought. But still… "What's happiness?" I mused. "Or unhappiness?" I smiled softly. "Do you think your father was really happy to leave you?"

Ikuto's expression flickered. "… I don't know," He whispered.

"That's right," I said quietly. "Do you want to know about him?"

"… Maybe."

"Why don't we find out together?" I asked, holding out my hand.

He looked at me, then my hand, his face conflicted. I saw him glance at Utau and Tadase, then at the house, then at me. He took my hand.

"Okay."

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	3. Ikuto is a Doomsday Prepper!

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* * *

**Ikuto  
**

When I was possessed by Easter, it had felt as if my body were being torn in two. I can still feel my heart shrieking in agony, writhing in pain. I remember what is was like when I couldn't control myself, forced to watch as I hurt the people I loved while I could do nothing but scream, trapped inside my head. A cloud of gloom was nothing compared to what it felt like; it was literally infesting my body, killing me slowly from the inside.

Now, as I slowly woke to find myself in a prison, my body wracked in pain, I was vaguely reminded of when I recovered after I had been freed from that nightmarish state, still in some considerable pain. Now, it was all too familiar; it was difficult to move, to breathe; every inch of me, inside and out, felt raw and blistering. I couldn't even shudder; it hurt. Worst of all, You, let alone any of my other friends, were anywhere in sight. I was completely, utterly alone.

But it was bearable. I did not black out again. And best of all, I could blink. And breathe. Yeah, that was nice. I only stared at the chipped concrete ceiling of my newfound settings, unsure where I was and what I was doing there, and waiting for the moment when the pain lessened enough that I could move, even if it were the barest inch.

All I knew about where I was would be what had happened beforehand and that there was a miniscule window with iron bars that I doubted Yoru could have squeezed through, letting in light. That told me I had to somewhat close to sunlight, somehow, because that light sure as hell didn't seem cold and fluorescent to me.

Thinking back, it probably would've been a good idea to try to find a way out starting from that moment, but it didn't even occur to me. I had no idea where I was and only the vaguest idea of how I got there. The last thing I remembered was being herded through Easter to destroy the Humpty Lock and Dumpty Key, a room that looked like one of their old recording rooms, a horrifying image of Akira Amakawa turning into some horrifying supernatural, and then nothing.

So, by taking a good guess, I would say that destroying the Lock and Key was a really bad idea.

After what felt very close to several long, tearfully boring eternities, I finally gathered the strength to turn my head to the side just slightly, ignoring the small flare of pain that shot up my spine. I had managed to catch a glimpse of another wall, just as chipped as the ceiling, but for some odd reason, a thick, black iron grate that would be utterly impossible for me to move covering… the concrete wall. There had to be some reason for it being there, but from what I could tell right now, it had just been put there because someone thought it would look better.

Too impatient to wait for the pain to subside, I turned by head again, now seeing another blank concrete wall, with another gate perfectly symmetrical to the one across from it. I frowned. Where was the door?

A nasty feeling pooled in my gut, and I sat up, stifling a groan of pain. There was no door, only iron grates perfectly positioned in the same spot on each wall. There were no visible security cameras, no visible light but that which came from the window, and no way out.

And no way in.

A sick feeling slid through my body, and I shuddered as I realized the truth. This cell wasn't made to hold a prisoner. Its main purpose wasn't just to keep me from escaping. I swallowed and licked my dry lips, already knowing that there would be no food or water coming, already dreading the slow insanity and starvation.

I was left in this place to die.

* * *

_When Amu found herself hovering an inch above a three-year-old boy, she tried not to panic._

_After calming herself down ("Tadase can't see you, you're invisible, silly") enough to move, the soft sound of footsteps alerted her to some other presence outside the door. There was a pause, and then the person, to light on their feet to be an adult and too quiet be considered a child, slipped away._

_"Wake up," Amu whispered, an odd sense of dread settling in the pit of her stomach._

_Tadase sat up, rubbing his eyes and yawning, blinking sleepily. A tiny pout formed at his mouth as the sound of receding footsteps._

_"Follow that noise," Amu murmured._

_And so Tadase did, slipping out of his little bed and stumbling sleepily out of bed and across the courtyard, rubbing his eyes and yawning as he went._

_At the gate, the figure was fumbling with the lock, Tadase waddled up behind him, still blinking sleepily. "Hmmm?" He blinked as his vision focused. "Onii-tan…?"_

_Ikuto didn't seem to hear Tadase as he secured his father's violin tighter over his shoulder, and hurried through the open gate._

_"Wait!" My voice tore through the silence, and Tadase went stumbling after, calling out. "Onii-tan!"_

_With a painful crash, Tadase tumbled and fell on the ground, crying out in pain as fresh blood welled from his wounds. "Aaaahh!"_

_Ikuto froze and looked over his shoulder, meeting eyes with his desperate "brother". Tadase looked at him, his eyes wide. _

_"Onii-tan…?"_

_Then Ikuto turned away, his face no longer visible, and broke into a run, leaving Tadase behind and disappearing into the fog. Amu bit her lip, frowning as Tadase began to sob, calling out for his older brother to come back._

* * *

I wasn't quite sure how long I'd been in that prison, pacing the cell, running my hands over the walls, trying to peer out the window, yank at the iron bars that were drilled in deep. No shadows or images of anything more than a soft sky blue and the occasional cloud drifting across visible through the black iron bars of the window; it seemed there was no one to call for help.

… How long had I been here?

It could have been anywhere from a few hours to a week. My body wracked with pain, but was that what it felt like to starve to death? My mind was clear enough, but for how long before it muddled from exhaustion, dehydration and starvation? How much time did I have left to find a way out of this hellhole before I died?

My mind was awhirl as I stared through the light filtering through the window. How was I going to get out? For that matter, where were the rest of my friends? Surely, if they were still alive, they would be in prisons similar to mine… but where? Maybe through the other walls?

Feeling brightened, I gave a loud shout. "HEY!" No answer. I tried again, forcing down the slow panic that had already begun to gnaw at my stomach. "HEY!"

Nothing.

I slid down to the floor, my fists clutched tightly. I needed to get out of here. I was going to go insane if I couldn't—there ha to be some way out. And how had they gotten me in here, anyways? I couldn't fit through the window, and I certainly doubted that they shoved me through the walls. The only possible suggestion would be that they either created the structure around me, or…

"There's a way out," I said aloud.

An odd tingling had started at my fingertips and toes engulfed my limbs, an invisible plague progressing up my torso and swallowing me whole. I couldn't speak, couldn't scream—my entire vision was swallowed up by black dots, swarming like ants over my vision. I fell to my hands and knees, my entire body shaking and twitching uncontrollably. A loud ringing in my ears swallowed up the silence and any noise that came with it, my head throbbing painfully as I convulsed, trying desperately to stay upright.

Suddenly an image flashed across my vision: A boy disappearing into a veil of mist, a toddler sobbing behind him. As the image faded like some imprint left on my eyes, I found myself crumpled in a heap on the ground, staring at the concrete floor beneath me. My head felt numb and heavy, my ears felt painfully clogged, and my tongue felt like lead in my mouth. Inside my head, I had let loose a long string of curses.

"Ikuto?"

I froze. "Amu?" I tried to crane my head, but everything felt like stone: rough, hard, and frozen in place. "Amu, where are you?"

"Oh, thank goodness," She breathed, and in the corner of my vision I saw her glide closer—wait, glide? A sudden, barely warm pressure pressed against my face and around my neck. A very thin, partially opaque image seemed to solidify slightly, and yet her arms still passed though my flesh, as if she were a ghost. She pulled away, her eyes filled with tears. "I—I thought you were dead!"

I shook my head, lifting a hand to her cheek and already knowing I couldn't touch her. "I'm fine," I said, smiling briefly at her. "How did you get in here? Do you know what's going on?"

She shook her head. "Do you remember how you got in here?"

"Of course." My expression darkened. "Something—whatever it was—took Akira-chan's form and fooled us into thinking we had to destroy the Lock and Key. I can't remember after they broke, it's all black. When I woke up, I found myself in here."

She sighed and looked around, her brow furrowing. "A cell. No door, no entrance. They aren't coming back, are they?"

"I doubt it." I let out a short, humorless bark of a laugh. "Have you found the others? Are they okay?"

Amu shook her head. "I didn't tell you this before, because I wasn't supposed to, but now…" She sighed as she began explaining, her face lined with stress as she spoke.

"… and the night we fought O Shinge, I dreamt that she gave me these." My eyes widened as she lifted—_impossible_—the Lock and Key from beneath her shirt. "I think that's how I didn't pass out, because when the other Lock and Key were destroyed, I still had these. I escaped and then made my way to the Road of Stars, and for some reason I've been infiltrating the past and recreating it. I think maybe that… thing, whatever it is, is, or was, I guess, messing with our memories, although it doesn't seem like it had much effect on us."

"I'm not sure why, either," I frowned. "What happened to change me?"

Amu pursed her lips. "I'm not sure. All I can guess is that since our guardian characters haven't reformed, is that it has something to do with that. But anyways," She said, standing, "I need to get you out of here. We have to find the others."

I nodded and stood, and she murmured, "Unlock my heart." Nothing happened. "That's weird…" She frowned. "I felt something… Maybe…?" She tried it again.

I turned to the window, where the light had darkened considerably, leaving only deep blue and fiery red; it appeared the sun, if that was the sun, was sinking. The stars, however… "The Road of Stars is outside, Amu."

Her face went pale. "But… you can't go outside. How—how am I supposed to—?"

"You can't," I said gently.

Amu shook her head, terrified. "No. No, I'm not leaving you here." She looked around frantically. "I—I can—" Her hands twitched towards her neck.

"No." I said firmly. "Amu, don't take that thing off. If you can't touch me, then you have no physical body. For all we know, you're the spirit of yourself or something, and those are the only things that are keeping you tied here. Your body might even be imprisoned somewhere like I am here; who's to say that when you went to the Road of Stars that first time, you didn't leave your body behind and that thing got it?"

She sagged. "I—I know. But I can't leave you here."

"Go. I'll find a way out." I gave her a hopeful smile. "Maybe you can get me Yoru back, and then I'll definitely survive. I'm sure of it. I promise."

She looked at me, all watery eyes and quivering lips, and I hugged her, kissing her gently. "As long as you don't meet some new guy while I'm waiting for you. Then I'll have some ass to kick."

Amu cracked a weak, teary smile. "Shut up," She said, her voice breaking. "I'll see you soon. Promise."

"Cross your heart and hope to die?"

"Stick a needle in my eye."

And with that she was gone, shooting up and disappearing right through the wall, into the night. I watched her fade into the distance, the Road of Stars dissolving into darkness, and sat down, sighing. I closed my eyes for a moment, leaning back against the wall, resting my head for just a moment.

The sound of footsteps and the abnormal cold jolted me out of my sleep. My eyes flashed open, flickering and searching the place as I shifted my stiff limbs, before I spotted the feet at the top of the window, casting long, dark shadows into the prison. I barely had the sense to freeze in place and shut my eyes tight before I felt bright light shine fully in my face, illuminating the inside of my eyelids a veined red as I forced myself not to twitch. I felt the light remain on my face for a long moment, before it descended downwards, and I opened my eyes just a crack.

The shadowed, oddly blank face of a man poked in from behind the bars of the window. He didn't look at all familiar, but his eyes, clouded and dull, sent chilled shivers up my spine. The strong scent of musk filled the suddenly frigid air; I held in a shudder of cold.

**_I see you,_** a voice whispered in my ear.

My eyes flew open, and suddenly I was on my feet, fleeing to the back of my cell. Fear had clouded my mind, pouring through my limbs like heavy syrup and settling deep in my bones. My breath was coming out in short, thin bursts, frozen in the chill as malaise tore through my body.

I couldn't speak, couldn't even scream as I clutched at the cell walls, eyes wide and terrified. Chaotic thoughts smashed through my mind, none of them decipherable from anything more than pure terror that I had never, ever experienced so strongly.

Then the face smiled, its dull, clouded eyes wide and alight as a slow smile stretched and morphed its face. **_I can smell your fear,_** it hissed, one of its hands stretching out with twitching, spidery fingers. **_I can smell it in your blood._**

As it spoke, its whisper echoing in my ears, its smile grew wider as its thin fingers reached through the bars. There was a horrible squelching sound as the flesh on its limb distorted and stretched, squirming around the thin bars and reforming as it moved. The scent of musk was so strong it tore the inside of my nose apart, and I let out a terrified sob as the hand came closer, barely a foot from my face. Half a foot. Three inches. Less than an inch.

The tip of its finger brushed my face.

Stinging, burning pain shocked me out of my trance, and I threw up my hands, yelling something unintelligible. Bright white light flashed in front of my eyes, blinding me, and I fell backwards. Before I could register what was happening, there was a hiss, and the hand and face retracted suddenly. I scrambled into the nearest corner, my heart still pounding in my chest.

The thing was gone.

I slid to the floor in a heap, putting my face in my hands. I'd never felt so weak, terrified, never felt so vulnerable and afraid before. Even Easter, even O Shinge had never scared me so much, and I could've died horrible a horrible death at the hands of both. But this…

I hadn't known what it was. If anything, I assumed that that gold and silver eyed man from before had done something to the one that appeared just now. Right now, I wasn't sure if I had honestly just been terrified beyond all imagining because this thing simply scared me that much, or because it had done so purposely, like that awful sense of pure fear and malaise just followed it around wherever it went.

I curled in on myself, shivering. This wasn't familiar at all. It seemed as if there was a whole well of darker, deeper emotions hidden where I couldn't see, like something stashed away in an underground vault that I didn't have the clearance to even be in the same room as. Like my emotions were a vast ocean, and this terror was hidden at the bottom where I couldn't go. I didn't even feel like I could recognize myself anymore. It seemed I'd found the bottom of my ocean.

I looked at my feet, still breathing hard, and nearly jumped out of my skin. There was an egg, black and white with images of cats ringing the shell. "Yoru?" I asked quietly.

The egg rose up in the air and cracked, light emitting from the fissures as it broke open. "I'm back~nya!" Yoru appeared before me, grinning. "Ya really have to stop tryin' to get rid of me, Ikuto," He said, grinning mischievously. "I'm just gonna keep comin' back~nya!"

"Yoru," I said in relief, taking my guardian character into my hand and stroking the top of his head. He purred in content, smiling happily up at me. "I thought I'd lost you."

"Nope!" He presented himself grandly. "I'm back for sure~nya. Amu told me everything, so ya' don't need to fill me in," He said importantly.

"You saw Amu?" I said in surprise. "How?"

"I popped up in the middle of some old memory, and there was Amu, blathering about some task she had to do~nya. Something 'bout bringing everyone back? I dunno, but anyways, she sent me back here and told me to tell you some real mushy stuff, like that she loves ya or somethin' and that she's gotta do whatever she's doin' alone, and she doesn't know how long that'll take~nya."

I nodded. "I know. We're going to get everybody out of here safely."

Yoru nodded. "Hey, why are we in here, anyways~nya?"

"I don't know exactly," I told him. "But first things first, we need to get out of here. You need to get out through there—" I pointed to the window, "—and find me something that will help me break out. The others could be anywhere."

"Nuh-uh~nya," Yoru said in surprise. "There in here!"

"What? What do you mean?"

"Little King is through that wall," Yoru said, clearly perplexed. "Or at least, I think so. I can still feel Kiseki's presence~nya. It's faint, but then he might be a few rooms down. This place is enormous~nya."

"Enormous?" I repeated, frowning. "What do you mean, it's enormous?"

"It's a whole labyrinth!" Yoru said impatiently. "The whole thing's underground~nya!"

"A labyrinth?" I gaped. "We're all trapped in a labyrinth?! But how!?"

"I dunno~nya." Yoru shrugged. "Anyways, it's not that bad, it's pretty much just a billion of the exact same room as this one. There're just weird stuff in them."

"Weird stuff? Like what?"

"Oh, you know." Yoru scratched behind his ear idly with his foot. "Little King and the others. Couple things that seem like monsters and stuff~nya. You know. But hey, I think there's food somewhere in here 'cause I smell fish~nya!"

"How do you know all this again?" I said helplessly.

Yoru smiled happily. "I'm a guardian character, duh! And this place is weird. I can just feel it. 'S like it's magical or somethin'. 'S not like X-Energy or Character Energy, it's different, but… not different~nya. Like a… an older form or something. I dunno how to explain it. It's the same, but it's…"

"Like an ancestor?" I suggested, catching on. "Like Character Energy and X-Energy were formed from it?"

"Exactly!" Yoru nodded, satisfied. "That's it! So, what exactly counts as 'helping you break out'? Do sardines count~nya?"

"Huh." I sat back, frowning. "A labyrinth… Yoru, I want you to get me something that'll help me break down this wall. I frowned. "Also a piece of paper and a notepad. There's a lot of things you're going to need to get."

"Okay~nya!"

Three hours, fifty-eight minutes, and thirteen seconds later, Yoru arrived with the last food he could scrounge up, placing three packages of fast food into two backpacks full of objects that included flashlights, lighters, first-aid kits, two gallon-sized water bottles, blankets, large black trash bags, bandages, antiseptic, antibiotics, hand-warmers, a hygiene kit, duct tape, two Swiss-Army-Knives, dried food packets, etc, all which fit neatly into two black backpacks.

(What? You have to be prepared.)

"Thanks, Yoru." I continued to chip away at the wall, using the large sledgehammer he had somehow dragged into the room. The wall crumbled oddly easily underneath the force of my sledgehammer, but I ignored this, simply glad there was less work to do.

I peered through the hole, trying to focus in the dim light. The moon had slipped behind a cloud long ago, which made it impossibly difficult to see, but it seemed to me Yoru was right—the whole place looked like a maze of the exact same room, built over and over and over again.

Somewhere in this labyrinth, my friends were waiting.

Still too dark to see, I hefted the tool back and slammed it forward, breaking down enough of the wall for me to easily squeeze through wearing a pack. I peeked through the hole once more, scanning the room. My stomach dropped.

Tadase lay limp on the ground, still and dead and unbreathing, his clothes rumpled and his bones sticking out from beneath. I almost threw myself forward in relief; he looked like Death itself, but the sight of him released so much tension from my body I hadn't realized had been there before that it was astonishing.

Until a dark figure, beastly and growling and squelching, knelt over him, its mouth latched tightly on my brother's shoulder. Thick, curling ram's horns protruded from its large, misshapen skull, and in the dim light, I could see its face: animalistic, demonic, with sharp, yellowed teeth, a greasy face, and a long, flickering tongue that twisted and writhed in the air. I almost screamed in terror as dark began to pool around my brother.

The monster's gaze snapped upwards, as if sensing me, its pupil-less eyes dull and unseeing in the dark. I remained frozen in place when it snarled and lunged at me, dirty fingernails extended like claws, lunging towards me with a terrible, screaming ululation.

Without thinking, I swung the hammer as hard as I could, staggering back as it collided with the side of its head with a disgusting squelch. The monster collapsed, hissing and smoking.

I realized that it was not smoking, but dissolving into black smoke, until it was nothing more than darkness dispersing into the air.

I ran to Tadase's side, kneeling by him and stroking the hair back from his face. He was white as a corpse. He didn't move; he wasn't breathing and I couldn't feel anything more than an incredibly weak pulse. The mark where the monster and bit him was healing quickly, shrinking and dissolving from a nasty gash to a large scar to a pink welt to a white scratch shaped like teeth marks.

As gentle as I could, I rolled him from the pool of blood he lay in and onto his back, checking the clammy skin of his forehead and pulling a blanket from the pack and tucking him under it.

Still watching him, I settled back on a pile of rubble, sighing. Even after everything that had happened since I woke, I found it was almost impossibly difficult to calm down enough to rest. After some time, I spoke. "I think I'll rest for the rest of the night. Wake me if there's trouble, will you?"

"Yup~nya!"

I settled backwards on the hard ground, still uneasy, and fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

_Please review!_


	4. Attack of the Evil Vulture Women!

_Hello, hello! Sorry I didn't post yesterday. I've been on vacation with no access to a computer, so it took me a while to type it on my phone. Some of you may have noticed HLHK switched to the horror genre for a short period. I'm actually debating whether or not this will be horrifying enough, because it will get pretty creepy, but then, I'm not sure whether or not I'm going to intend it to be Fantasy/Horror or just Fantasy/Adventure. If you'd like to help me decide, please either review or PM me. Also, if you choose to do so, please note to what degree you're willing to help, because the more you help the more it will spoil it for you. Thanks!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Tadase  
**

I woke to the sound of fighting.

Every inch of my body wracked in pain as I opened my eyes with a gasp, the taste of acid on my tongue and a sound like shattering glass in my ears. My eyes were blinded with white light before it died away, and I found grey sky staring back at me as the sound of grunting mingled with that of snarling and snuffling pierced my ears. I struggled to sit up, fighting back a gasp of pain, eyes flickering wildly at the scene that lay before me.

The high walls that surrounded us were old brick, rising into the sky. Everything as shrouded in mist and shadow, from the ivy that had burrowed its way into the bricks to the scent of rainwater and pine. Long pathways led in opposite directions of each other; one split into five different pathways, while the other curved out of sight.

Ikuto was on the ground to my right, half kneeling, trapped against a wall, character-changed into Black Lynx with his claws extended and crisscrossed over his chest. Above him, three beasts swooped down with long, sharp talons, slashing viciously at his flesh. Though the monsters' heads were that of women with long, straggly hair and beautiful (albeit greasy and caked with past meals) faces, ruffled, dust-grey feathers sprouted along their elongated, distorted necks and covered their vulture-like bodies.

I struggled to my feet, breathing hard and staring with shock and confusion. Ikuto fell back, slashing outwards with his claws; he didn't notice me.

Before I could stop myself, I had snatched up a chunk of brick from alongside the wall and threw as hard as I could, hitting each of the monsters squarely on the head. With a furious cry, their attention was drawn straight at me, wings beating the air, their long necks twisting in my direction. The women smiled, their teeth jagged, yellow and dirty.

With an ear-piercing shriek, they dove at me, talons stretched towards my face, and I threw myself out the way with a startled cry, landing hard on the rubble, their claws slashing at the spot where my head had been only a moment before. I scrambled backwards, hyperventilating, as Ikuto leapt forward with a yell, slashing at the birds with vicious accuracy. There was a shriek, a sound like an explosion, and the second his claws hit the birds, they dissolved into thick black smoke with a strong stench.

"Tadase," Ikuto panted, kneeling at my side as he popped out of his transformation. "You're up."

"Um. Yes."

"Hey, Little King!" Yoru popped up, giving me a feral grin. "Sleeping Beauty's finally awake!"

"Thank goodness you're awake." Ikuto ruffled my hair lightly, and I blinked at him.

"Onii-san… what's going on?" I looked around, frowning. "Where are we?"

"… I have absolutely no idea," Ikuto admitted. "Yesterday Yoru said it was an enormous amount of concrete rooms that all looked exactly alike, but now it looks like an actual labyrinth. I know it's magical, or whatever, so maybe it's just trying to confuse us." I stared at him, and he laughed gently. "Sorry, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. I'll get to that later. In the meantime, we should eat."

"You're not hurt, are you?" I asked anxiously, running my gaze over his body. There were slash marks on his clothes, but I couldn't see any wounds.

He waved me off dismissively. "I'm fine." I watched, mildly stunned as he strode over to one corner of the room, pulling a fast food bag from a large green backpack and extracted two hot curry donuts from Mr. Donut, handing one to me. "Here. Eat."

"It doesn't look like a concrete labyrinth anymore," I said through a mouthful of donut. "It feels like a maze." I gestured around.

"Don't speak when your mouth is full." He knocked me on the head. "But yeah. Do you remember anything from before you woke up?" Ikuto inquired, polishing off the last of his donut.

If I closed my eyes, I could still see the Lock and Key, shattering with an earsplitting squeal. "Yeah. Did… did the Lock and Key really…?"

"Sort of." He looked away. "It's not a long story, but it might be a confusing one."

"I'm willing to bet we have time," I said.

Ikuto sighed, leaning back against the wall and looking up at the dusty-grey clouds. "When the Lock and Key were destroyed, they weren't the only thing that became ruined. Once they were destroyed in their physical form, they could only exist spiritually. That's why Amu, who was secretly wearing their spiritual form, could escape. Now, however, she's trapped in the spirit world. We can see her, talk to her, but she's on a different plane of existence, and she can't take them off because there's a chance that if she does, they'll just… disappear.

"The thing is, she's the only one of us who can fix this, since she's the only one with the capability of getting to the Road of Stars, since none of us had ever had that power before, and she can't take us to it, since, well, she's in a different plane. Instead, she's traveling the Road of Stars searching for things that that thing changed. We don't know why or how, but somehow that thing messed around in the past and changed the future. Whatever things it changed, I don't know exactly, but I think that it was just little things, things that we wouldn't notice changed in our memories, just little things that ended up messing up the big picture in the future."

"But if she's traveling the Road of Stars changing things, this shouldn't even be happening, right?" I asked, frowning. "Since on the Road of Stars, there's not really a concept of time, since it's basically time itself. It doesn't matter how long she takes, because when she's fixed the past, the future will just be realtered back to whatever it should have been, and we wouldn't be here."

"That's what we can't figure out," Ikuto told me. "But that monster is able to control time. Actually, that thing is above time itself; it's like Time doesn't even affect it. It just travels wherever it wants. Who know's what it's capable of?"

Ikuto looked down. "The rest of us, the other nine, we're all trapped in this place, this labyrinth, if that's really what it is. We have to find our way out, or just stay alive until what needs to be fixed is fixed. I don't know how or what will happen when everything is set right, so the best thing we can do now is just… look for everyone else, wherever they are. We'll be safer in numbers, anyway."

I put down the rest of my curry donut. "Our guardian characters… mine is gone. Does that mean that the others, wherever they are, are missing theirs, too?"

"I think that the Lock and Key was holding our past together, keeping our pasts and presents from being interfered with, like a force-field. When the Lock and Key were destroyed, that force field was gone, and that thing used that as its chance. Part of taking that chance could have been taking away our guardian characters, like making sure they were never formed. Confusing, yeah," He said, nodding. "You'd think that if we never got guardian characters, then you wouldn't even know what one was right now and we probably wouldn't be here. Like I said, it's confusing. But I also don' think we have time to sit around trying to figure it out. The best we can do now is find the others and hope Amu can restore everything back to normal."

I caught the regretful tone in his words, and placed a hand on his arm. "Hey, Onii-san, there's nothing you can do to help her. She's got to do this on her own, you can't go with her this time. None of us can, it's literally impossible."

"I know, I know, but—" He sighed in frustration. "I can't just sit here and do nothing. She's out there, risking her life, doing hell knows what… I mean, at least I have you here, she doesn't have anyone. She doesn't even have a choice—she has to do this alone, and I'm supposed to just leave her? How am I supposed to deal with that?"

"You can trust her," I said quietly. "She can do this."

Ikuto looked away, silent. "… We need to get going," He said finally, getting to his feet. "Can you walk?"

I stood, wincing with pain. "Yeah," I managed.

He sighed. "You sure?"

"Yes," I said stubbornly.

He looked at me for a moment as he wrapped up the trash, stuffed it into the backpack, and shouldered the pack. "Right. But of course, if you weren't, and you tried walking anyway, you'd probably end up falling over or fainting or collapsing or something, don't you think?" He fixed me with a piercing glare.

I stared back defiantly. "Maybe."

Ikuto raised an eyebrow. "So you can vouch for that?" I wavered. "Because, if you did collapse or something, then I would be forced to carry you, now, wouldn't I?" Heat began to creep its way into my cheeks at the humiliating idea, and he smirked. "That's what I thought." He held out his arm, and I took it, glaring at him. "Careful, little brother. I might just have to toss you over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes if you get overexerted."

"You're infuriating."

"I love you too."

* * *

_The moon hung low and heavy in the early spring sky, illuminating a garden waking ever so slowly from the depths of winter. Trees hung heavy with the buds of cherry blossoms; below in the garden, green shoots poked sleepy heads from the cool ground and the air was clean with the scent of returning life._

_Amu swooped down towards the scene, eyes intent and focused as she flew over the wall and wound her way through the trees. "Now what are you doing here?" She mused as she landed gracefully on the old wooden patio, slipping in through a side door towards the sound of laughter._

_There sat a familiar scene, one she recognized quite clearly—it had been Tadase's birthday, set at the end of ninth grade year. Nagihiko sat in a relaxed position on the floor, with Rima crouched in a ball and poking his cheek, trying to break his calm expression. Kukai was splayed on the couch across Past-Amu's and Utau's laps. Yaya lay on the ground arguing with Kairi about the amount of candy she should have that night—or day, really, as it was hours past midnight._

_"Come ooonnn!" Yaya whined, squirming to reach the candy bowl that Kairi kept out of her reach. "It's New Year's, Kairi! It's a celebration!"_

_"No, and I don't see why I'm not already taking you home, there's no point in staying here," Kairi scolded. _

_"How rude," Kiseki sniffed, and received a punch from Temari._

_Kairi blinked, then shot an apologetic glance at Tadase, who sat awkwardly on the arm of the couch, oddly stiff next to Amu. "Oh. Sorry, Tadase."_

_Tadase smiled politely. "No, you're right. It is late, after all."_

_"Aw, c'mon." Kukai reached a hand up and poked Tadase's stomach, eliciting a startled blush from the teen. "It's too late to go home. Why don't we all just sleep over?"_

_Rima scoffed, still jabbing Nagihiko in the cheek. "Like either of my parents would ever allow that. Sleeping over at a guy's house with both girls and guys? They'd bust in here with the entire military and police force. And maybe a couple thugs and some of the yakuza, I wouldn't put it past my dad to find a way," She added thoughtfully." Kusu Kusu giggled._

_"And I've got a performance tomorrow night," Nagihiko said, smiling sheepishly and completely ignoring Rima, who was failing miserably in her attempts to annoy him._

_"And you are practicing all day," Rhythm commented._

_"Well, I'm fine with staying," Utau said, yawning and stretching. "It's not like this place isn't like my other house, after all."_

_"… I should get home, too," Past-Amu said awkwardly._

_"Really?" Su said curiously. "But I thought we didn't have any—ouch!"_

_Ran and Miki had pinched Su, hissing into the little chara's ear and glancing at Tadase. Kiseki glowered at them._

_A sudden flood of realization and guilt swept through the current Amu. Almost a month and a half prior to this event, she had ended a relationship with Tadase. It had been mutual, but for months it had also been strained and forced, due to the fact that she… knew she loved Ikuto, but dated Tadase anyway because she thought she loved him enough to make him happy._

But no one wants to be the next best thing,_ Amu thought guiltily to herself._ No one wants to receive affection out of pity.

_"Well" Tadase started hesitantly, drawing everyone's attention. "I think—" He hesitated._

_"Go on, birthday boy," Utau said teasingly. "We're all listening."_

_Or at least, they were before a loud bang on the screen door interrupted everything. Kukai fell out of Past-Amu's and Utau's laps with a crash, Nagi sat up too fast and hit his head on the table, Past-Amu and Yaya shrieked, Rima toppled backwards, and Kairi flailed his arms around madly with his eyes bugging slightly._

_The screen door slid open, and Ikuto stood leaning against the frame, a wide smirk across his face. _

So that's who I'm controlling, _Amu thought._ _"'Sup, kiddies?" She called out._

_"Ikuto!" Utau leapt up immediately and embraced him. "I thought you weren't coming back till the summer!"_

_"I couldn't miss my little brother's birthday," Amu made Ikuto say brightly, ruffling Tadase's hair. Then, remembering with a sigh, she made him he lean down, grinning at Past-Amu. "Hello, my little Amu-koi."_

_Past-Amu immediately flushed and began stuttering, slapping at Ikuto. "Get—get away, you pervert! It's not like I'm happy to see you!"_

_"Aw, c'mon, Amu-koi," Ikuto said happily, seating himself on the couch and scooping her up into his lap under Amu's direction. "Don't I get a 'welcome back' kiss?"_

_With the rapt attention of the seven other occupants of the room, Tadase stood to the side awkwardly, forgotten._

_"So, tell us about Europe. How was it?"_

_"Did you find your dad?"_

_"You brought us souvenirs, right? Where's mine?"_

_"Yaya, that's not polite."_

_"All in good time, my children." Ikuto laughed. "First you need to know how I escaped from the clutches of a nasty ex-convict and… found my dad," He said dramatically._

_"Wow, really?"_

_"Tell us!"_

_"Where are my souvenirs?!"_

_"Yaya, manners!" _

_The birthday boy, still standing, listened for some time, his congratulations and his comments utterly lost and unheard. He may as well have been a ghost. But as Amu watched him, slowly realizing exactly how familiar this scene was, also began to notice how much she had seen that soft, sad expression on her friend's face. Suddenly Kiseki's constantly imperious, snobbish behavior made sense—how could a guardian character not be constantly offended by the fact that no one ever bothered to pay any attention to their character bearer?_

Come to think of it,_ Amu thought, _He never really seemed to talk much before Nadeshiko arrived. He just… sat and listened. In truth…_ She bit her lip. _He might as well have not been by our sides at all.

_As the conversation dissolved from Ikuto's adventures into other topics, Tadase slipped out backwards towards the screen door, opening it and stepping out, shutting it quietly. The constant chatter never ceased even after he had disappeared—no one had noticed._

_"It's your birthday," Kiseki said angrily, tossing his cape over his shoulder. "And they did not even notice you left."_

_"It's fine, Kiseki," Tadase said tiredly. "It's not technically my birthday anymore, anyway, it's past midnight."_

_"And it's still your party!" Kiseki raged. "You are a king, Tadase!"_

_Tadase walked over to one tree in particular, a beautiful willow that had clearly flourished under his care, its limbs trailing the ground in a thick veil. It also happened to be a tree Amu had never noticed before. He brushed aside the long, trailing branches gently, stepping underneath its canopy to where a worn old bench was hidden by the trunk._

_"Kiseki, it's okay," Tadase said quietly. "Anyways, they're my friends. They'll notice I left." He sounded as if he were trying to convince himself._

But we didn't notice you left,_ Amu thought guiltily. _I remember. We never did.

_Tadase leaned back on the bench with a soft exhale, staring up at the canopy that sheltered him from the world. Amu watched him; he seemed content there alone, without speaking, simply listening. _

It's what he had been used to,_ Amu thought, burning with shame. _It's not like he ever said much around us.

We probably wouldn't have been listening, anyway.

_She sat beside him in silence until dawn light seeped in through the veil of green, just a faint trickle in the sky. She was there when the door opened and tired voices slipped out into the garden. And she stood by his side when he slipped from his secret haven back into the world, joining the throng of his friends and waving farewell, calling his goodbyes as his friends' gazes slid over him unseeing, and continued to smile when Ikuto kissed Amu's cheek. It was as if he had never left in the first place._

_And in truth, it wouldn't have made a difference if he hadn't left at all._

* * *

The veil of fog grew thick and chilled the air as we trudged through the maze, until we were forced to hold hands so as not to lose each other. The paths disappeared from sight, so that we followed them with one hand on the wall, using the hammer and pick to leave marks to show where we'd been.

"This isn't right." Ikuto stopped suddenly, and I ran into his back. He ran his hand along the wall, tracing a pockmark in the wall. He jolted forward and I followed, slowly comprehending the line of pockmarks. "That's impossible. We made a right turn right… here." He laid a hand along a brick wall, which was devoid of both the path we had taken previously and pockmarks.

"Are—are you sure?" I asked, feeling nervous.

"Yes," Ikuto said tensely. He led me along the wall, where the pockmarks reappeared. "The walls are changing."

"But—that's impossible," I said weakly. "Isn't it?"

"We're in a magical labyrinth, Tadase."

"Oh. Right."

Ikuto sighed, running a hand over his face. "There are two reasons why the walls would be changing: either the labyrinth is just messing with us and getting us lost, or it's leading us towards something."

"Something bad," Yoru said nervously. He dived into Ikuto's shirt and did not resurface.

"Right. Something bad." Ikuto clenched his jaw. "We don't have any choice. We'll just have to keep moving, and hope there isn't something waiting instead. C'mon."

I gulped and followed him forward, unconsciously gripping his hand a bit tighter. It was slow going. The mist grew even thicker as we went along, until it was so dense that we both had to extend hands into the fog so as to feel where we were going. Everything was cold; the mist seeped into our flesh, our bones. The dirt that crunched beneath our shoes grew wet and soaked through to our skin. I could see only the hand I held and my own two feet. We'd stopped making marks in the wall.

My other hand groped along the wall, which was cold and hard under my touch. I'd grown so used to the sensation of cool brick that I let out a cry and startled backwards the second my fingers comprehended something that rustled and hissed.

"Tadase!" I heard Ikuto shout, and I scrambled back up to my feet, breathing hard. Yoru was yowling with fear; I'd let go of Ikuto's hand. I heard frantic footsteps, and a body rammed into mine, knocking the both of us over. The air fled from my lungs in a surprised gasp.

"Tadase?" Ikuto's frantic voice called from above me, and I attempted to reply, but it came out as an odd wheeze. He pulled me to my feet, and I felt hands groping my face. Ikuto appeared through the mist, squeezing my cheeks uncomfortably between his hands.

I managed to mumble, "Yfurrr hurdinnn me."

"...What?"

"He said you're hurting him," Yoru said, clearly still spooked.

"Ah-sorry." He released my cheeks. "Don't scare me like that. Why did you scream?"

"Ahaha..." I laughed sheepishly. "I just felt something like a plant. It had leaves." He gave me an odd look, and I flushed. "No, really. Um." I tugged his hand and pulled him over with my hand stuck out. "Here, it's a hedge."

"What...? Huh. I guess it is."

Yoru harrumphed. "What's with that?"

"I dunno. But maybe it means we're out of that maze?" I said hopefully.

"Hopefully." Ikuto sounded as if he were thinking. "Stay close to me just in case."

As we followed the hedge wall, the fog began to dissipate. The grey clouds overhead, however, grew darker as we walked on, and we retrieved the flashlights from Ikuto's backpack.. As the hours dragged by in silence, the clouds' hue paled and the skies deepened with indigo.

We stopped to rest, sitting back to back with the pack lying next to us. Ikuto handed me a chocolate taiyaki. "Here. Rest, you'll need it. I'll keep watch."

As I finished off the rest of my taiyaki, I settled back uncomfortably, trying to find the comfiest dirt pile and close my eyes. I think perhaps I would have succeeded in falling into an uneasy sleep if it hadn't been for the fact that the hedges started trying to eat me.

I didn't notice the leaves and thorny vines that wiggled like feelers and wrapped themselves around my legs until they had progressed to my waist and arms. My eyes flashed open the moment they tightened, thorns stinging my flesh.

I gasped and wriggled, trying to get free. "Ikuto!"

"What?" Ikuto's eyes widened as he caught sight of the vines, which had begun to secrete a nasty smelling pus-like substance that, upon touching my shirt, burned right through it onto my skin. Immediately searing, acidic pain ripped at my flesh, and I screamed in pain, writhing.

I couldn't hear what Ikuto was saying, although I had the vague notion from his tone that he was cursing violently. The next thing I knew, the vines were slashed to pieces and I was free, being tugged from the mass and borne away. All around, I could see more vines whipping out, a swarm of green that lashed out at the two of us. Ikuto kept running, babbling colorful swear words as he dodged and tripped and stumbled, slashing madly at the vines.

Ikuto was shouting something in my ear, but I was deaf; my skin was screaming in pain and I was squirming in terror and agony as I watched my own flesh bubble and smoke.

The next thing I knew, I was drowning, thrashing as water burned in my lungs, and then everything was ice and soothing cool. I opened my eyes and vomited water, coughing and spitting. I sat up from Ikuto's lap and he pulled back, wiping his mouth.

"Urrrg."

"God." Ikuto choked out.

"That was—that was—" I stammered, blinking rapidly and wiping away the water. We were beside and enormous pool of water in the middle of a large green forest. Behind us, the hedge shuddered and groaned, its vines still whipping the air and reaching for us, just out of reach.

My skin looked horribly disfigured-visible through singed cloth, the skin was raw and punctured where the thorns had dug in. They ran in long stripes down my body, like some grotesque imitation of a tiger's stripes, and throbbed with heat. But I was alive.

"Thank you," I mumbled, shivering.

"Anytime, little brother." He panted, hugging me. "Anytime." He had transformed into Black Lynx, which explained how he had freed me-but he was covered in nasty red welts, the dress of his transformation shredded to reveal similarly grisly slashes of bubbled skin.

"We're out of the maze," I said, curling up in a ball and looking up. Above, the stalks around us formed the heads of flowers, daisies and dandelions. An enormous beetle scuttled through the enormous grass a distance away; moths fluttered overhead, leaving a trail of dust in its wake. "But we're not out of the labyrinth, are we?"

Ikuto shook his head. "Out of the frying pan..."

"And into the fire," I finished, shuddering. It was clear the nightmare had only begun.

* * *

_Have I ever mentioned that I like reviews? Reviews are nice.  
...Please?_


	5. A Fucking Enormous Cat Hits On Utau!

_Please be warned, there are graphic and suggestive scenes in this chapter. May contain triggers for abuse. Reader discretion is advised._

_All rights go to Peach-Pit._

* * *

**Utau**

"This is the weirdest labyrinth ever," I said aloud. "I always thought of them as hedge mazes, or maybe those corn mazes in America."

"It's weird," Il agreed. "But then, it's got a funny sort of feeling."

"I don't like it," El sniffed. "The love aura is too weak."

"Hate to agree with Blondie here, but she's right," Il grumbled. "There's too much fear and despair in here. It's not natural."

"Really comforting," I muttered, wiping the fresh sweat from my brow and trudging on.

I'd woken up in a canyon, where sweltering heat swam off the walls of the canyon. Droning insects and the occasional lizard scampered beneath the dry scrub and desert trees that filled the inside. Thick, stinging dust rose up and blew across the ground in thick, short bursts. I'd been walking for an hour or so, and I hadn't come across any water.

When I'd first awoken, it had been a nasty shock to find myself alone in the middle of a canyon. I'd stumbled around aimlessly for a while before finally collapsing beneath the weak shade of a desert tree, at which point Il and El appeared and began babbling. They'd explained that destroying the Lock and Key was an extremely dumb idea, that doing the dumb idea had ended all ten of us up in some unknown labyrinth-type place that had apparently dropped off the face of the Earth, and that it was magical and most likely designed to either kill us or drive us insane. Great.

On the bright side, Amu was supposedly free and undergoing some intense quest by traveling through time, while somewhere out there, Ikuto and Tadase were both awake. The rest, according to Amu, were hidden from view and in some weird dream state or some nonsense. In any case, according to Il and El, I was pretty much stranded here until I could find a way out, so my time would be very well spent searching for the others, so that at least we wouldn't all be fighting off monsters and whatnot alone.

Now, normally I love to travel. I've visited countries all around the world, visiting and volunteering at places where I've donated money to, like orphanages, villages, schools, you name it. But this canyon was nothing like I'd experienced before. It was hot, unbearably so. The walls rose up enormously high, a sheer vertical drop that I'd never be able to climb. The plant life was limited and sparse. There was no water, and the canyon itself truly was a maze—the winding pathways, the enormous forks, formations that were clearly once deltas but were now hulking dry rock—it seemed the labyrinth knew what it was doing.

I trudged on through the waves of heat, oddly mind-numb and fatigued. My throat was dry; I ran my tongue over my cracked lips and paused. "You wouldn't, by any chance, be able to sense any water nearby, would you?"

"No," Il said, her voice rough and tired. "But there are living creatures nearby, so they have to be getting it from somewhere."

"Animals?" Sure enough, an odd, musky smell hung in the air. Along the walls of the canyon, there were large, vicious gashes in the rocks. Around, the uppermost branches of a desert tree was broken and smashed.

"Smells bad." El wrinkled her nose. "Like cats."

My eyes narrowed in suspicion. Cats aren't big enough to slash the walls of canyons or break the tops of trees. "Il."

"Got it."

_Character transformation: Lunatic Charm!_

Trident in hand, I slipped forward quietly, eyes flickering all around me. The silence had never sounded so daunting until now, I thought idly, crouching slightly as I crept around.

There was a snap of a branch, and I froze, turning around slowly. I scanned the area, breathing hard, gripping my trident more firmly in my hands.

"Intriguing," A voice purred, an oddly seductive sort of snarl, and I whirled around to face the voice. El squealed and dived to hide behind my hair.

Towering over me, with the golden, flashing eyes of a cat, was an enormous lion, its tail waving serenely. Enormous bronze wings twisted up from the back, glinting in the sunlight as they changed smoothly from fur to feather. Most of the beast was covered in thick, golden fur, from its paws until the base its shoulders, at which point the fur blended into golden skin. Its face was that of a woman's, lovely and cunning, with wavy black hair that curled and twisted in the air, but the cruel curve of her lips and the malicious, hungry look in her eye was frightening.

"Sphinx," I breathed, both in fear and awe.

The sphinx cocked her head, her smile widening to show perfect, glowing white teeth. "Human," She replied easily, circling me slowly with her eyes fixed on my form. "May I ask why you intruded upon my domain?"

"Sorry," I said, trying to be polite. I didn't like the look she was giving me, but perhaps if she was benevolent... "I was just passing through."

She leaned down, sniffing me, and I held in a shiver. "Odd. I do not often share the company of humans, especially in such a place as it would be difficult for them to survive."

"Just... looking for a way out."

"Through my gate, then." She slunk closer. I could hear her purring.

"Your... gate?"

"Certainly." She smiled cruelly. "I am Phix, daughter of the first Great Sphinx, the Fifth Oracle, and the sole Keeper of the Gate of Mortality."

"The what?"

She twisted and morphed, shrinking and straightening into the body of a winged woman with twitching cat ears and tail, tall and shapely. And naked. "The Gate of Mortality, the gate which allows only mortal beings to pass through to their desired destination."

"I'd like to pass through the gate."

Phix chuckled. "If you wish." She swelled, morphing back into a sphinx, baring her teeth in a feral way.

She led me through the desert for some time, her paws soundless on the ground. She would have been silent, impossibly so, had it not been for the snap of tree branches as she brushed past, crushing them. As we walked, the rocks began to increase in size and change shape, from small, rough boulders just over half my height, to enormous chunks of black rock that rose high above my head, sharp and jagged and curved.

"The Gate of Mortality," Phix said calmly, lifting her gaze. I stared up at the gate in awe—it was enormous, a gargutuan archway through which different worlds shifted and drifted in and out of view. The tall, curved points of stone arched around it, carved with letters and symbols and runes in every language, both imaginable and unimaginable.

I took a step forward, but suddenly a razor-sharp claw barred my way, pressing me back forcefully, and I scrambled back hurriedly. "A moment, human. You have not the right to pass through my gates," She growled, leaning down to bare her teeth at me. "I require payment."

"Payment?" I said incredulously. "I don't have any money!"

"Riches?" The sphinx said disdainfully, tossing her head. "I have no use for gold or treasure. No, mortal, I seek a different sort of payment."

"Like what?" I said suspiciously.

"I require objects of true value. Things that are truly priceless," She said softly. "Things that mankind values. The love in your heart. A child. A memory. Your dreams." Her eyes flicked up and down my body, then to El, who hid in my hair. "Powers. Your deepest self. Your honor, your beauty. An object you cherish above all else."

My blood had gone cold. "I have nothing I can give."

"Nothing you wish to give," Phix corrected "That is what makes it priceless; that it is desired, required, needed to the point that giving it away would be painful. There is immense power in priceless things. That is why it is called the Gate of Mortality—you must pay a mortal price to pass through it."

"Then why would anyone want to pass through it?" I said angrily.

Phix sighed, morphing back into a woman. "There are often circumstances, ultimate requirements that forces mortal beings to choose this gate above all others. Perhaps you must escape to a safe haven which someone or something cannot pass into. You must arrive at some destination for some task. You have passed through the realms in a different place and long to return there. You search for your destiny. The choices are endless. But while there are other gates of similar talents, the Gate of Mortality is the only one from which you can come back freely. If you choose to pass through this gate, you could desire to come back, and you would."

"But you'd have to pay a price for every time you pass through?" I guessed.

"Perhaps." She paused. "Or perhaps not. Often, the pain from the loss is all one can bear, and sometimes it is not. Sometimes I grow fond of mortals who pass through constantly. Other times, mortals forget the loss that they are meant to feel when parting with something dear to their hearts."

I looked away. "I have nothing I could part with."

"Yes," She said quietly, "Yes, you do."

Her eyes flickered to my hand. I glanced down and swallowed hard; it was the promise ring Kukai had given me. I took meticulous care of it, cleaning it and keeping it safe. It was more beautiful now than when I had first received it, though I wore it constantly.

"I can't," I said immediately, shaking my head.

"Then you cannot pass through." She turned away.

"Wait!" I shouted, and she turned back, raising an eyebrow. "Isn't—isn't there anything else I can give?" I asked desperately.

She cocked her head. "Only that which would be even more painful to part with. But, human, why do you wish to pass through this gate so badly? What is it you seek?"

I looked down. "Where am I, really?"

"A foolish question. This is _Ongtupqa_, passageway to the Gate of Mortality. It was carved into the Earth by the hands of the river gods. But you should know that, yes?"

"It's on Earth?" I said incredulously. "So, I could just climb my way out of this canyon and get out of this labyrinth right now?"

"A labyrinth, you say?" Phix was amused.

"Yes, a labyrinth, or so I thought, but apparently—"

"But surely you know that you aren't within a labyrinth," She interrupted, frowning.

"Know what?"

Phix lifted her shoulders delicately. "I do not truly know, as I am not the one who created it. For lack of a better word, you could name it as a labyrinth. I would assume only the one whom built what you reside in could answer such a question."

"So... you're in this labyrinth with me?"

"Yes... and no."

"Okay...?" I shook my head. "Well, I want out of wherever I am."

"Out of the labyrinth?" Phix inquired.

I looked at her for a moment, then popped out of my character transformation. "...You said I could return."

"Once you pay me. Any mortals you bring with you, however, would be forced to pay the toll."

"That's probably the best offer I'm going to get." I looked into the gate, watching the realms swirl. "I can't leave the labyrinth," I said finally. "I've got friends I need to bring with me before I leave."

I hesitated, then shook my head. My friends were more important. It didn't matter how much the ring meant to me, I had no choice. With one shaking hand, I pulled the ring from my finger and clenched it in my fist, squeezing it tightly before dropping it into Phix's outstretched palm. It glittered with gold light, and disappeared.

The sphinx fixed her golden gaze on mine, searching. Then, "You have a great courage."

I nodded stiffly, forcing back tears. "I'd like to find my friends."

Phix moved away, lifting one clawed finger and pressing a rune, murmuring something in an unintelligible language. The gate glowed bright white, and I shielded my eyes. When the light faded, the image of a thick, misty jungle forest had appeared; the mist floated through the gate but lingered, as if it was frightened to pass into the canyon.

I walked towards the gate slowly, then paused and turned to face Phix. "You said you were an oracle."

"Aye, I am an oracle." She looked at me closely. "And I have seen your future and your coming. Indeed, I have long awaited your arrival."

"Mine?"

"Indeed." An odd sort of smile crossed her face. "You are intertwined with the destiny of this world, as are many beings of this world."

"You're not just making up some crazy prophecy to satisfy me?"

"No. As an oracle, I cannot see the entire future, only mere glimpses. But I have seen enough to guess what the fate of the world may be."

"And the fate of the world is?"

She sighed. "Many mortals who hear of their destiny, especially those whose tales are tragic, attempt to change their destiny and bring their fate upon themselves by trying to escape it. The Fates are cruel, after all."

"I see. Is my fate tragic?"

"I do not know."

"Will my friends and I get out of here alive?"

Phix looked at me, and for a moment I felt a thrill of foreboding. "Yes," She said sadly. "But in the realms of mankind, with every great triumph comes great sacrifice."

I swallowed hard. "One last question. Were you ever going to eat me?"

Phix laughed. "Go, human. We shall meet again."

I nodded, and walked through the gate. Behind me, the gateway grew dim and dark, and I began to walk forward into the jungle.

The gate had disappeared into the mist behind me before I realized she had never answered my last question.

* * *

_Amu landed gently on a dingy cobbled street, shivering slightly. The buildings were low and hooded, and the streets were entirely devoid of life. Across the way, a shuttered grey building rose slightly above the others. In the melancholy silence, it seemed haunted, abandoned, unloved. A small sign on the wrought-iron gate that surrounded the place read "New Hope Homes For Mentally Ill and Orphaned Minors"._

_The girl frowned, moving forward slowly. None of her friends were mentally ill or orphans. Unless..._

_"Nadeshiko?" Amu murmured in shock moving towards the orphanage hesitantly._

_She passed through the gate and down the beat-dirt path, into the orphanage. Funds seemed to have run low; the paper on the walls was colorless and peeling to reveal wood, the floors were covered in a thick layer of dust marred by many footprints, and the common rooms were empty but for old, faded furniture. In the bedrooms, small children slept on old mattresses and lumpy pillows, peaceful and dreaming._

_She came to a stop in front of an office door and entered, discovering it was a hospital wing. It was utterly empty but for a nurse snoring with her head on her desk, having accidentally scattered pills across the table._

_Amu picked up the bottle from which the pills had spilled and read the label, intrigued. Her eyes widened in shock._

_New Hope Homes Mental Hospital, No. 1234567-48324, Nadeshiko Fujisaki, Private Resident. Take one capsule every twelve hours and repeat daily until empty. Thorazine, 900 mg : refill when empty—Dr. authorization required._

_"Thorazine," I breathed. Amu dimly recalled her Health class and the brief mention of Thorazine. A medicine used to treat schizophrenia, she recalled. _

_"Nadeshiko is schizophrenic?"_

_Questions flooded through her mind. Why had she never told us? How bad was it, exactly? Did Nagihiko know? If not... how long, exactly, had she not taken medication? Did Nagihiko have it? Didn't twins usually share genes? Did that mean Nagihiko had it as well? If he did, why didn't he tell us?_

_Her hand tilted of its own accord and dumped the rest of the pills into the trash can. Amu started and cursed, fumbling with the bottle, before the nasty realization that that was what she was here to do. For whatever reason, Nadeshiko had to be taken off her anti-psychotic pills._

_"God," Amu breathed, utterly overwhelmed, watching as if from a distance as the little pills dropped, one by one, into the trash can and out of sight._

* * *

The jungle was thick and dark, and yet it certainly didn't seem ominous to me, nor to Il or El, who seemed content as the drifted by my side. All around, the sound of life echoed, from the buzz of insects, the occasional crunch of larger herbivores, and the occasional sight of a clearly disinterested carnivore.

Before, in the canyon, on the occasion that I crossed paths with an animal, they would snarl and retreat or dart away in fear. The hare had panicked and sprung away madly, while the snake gave me a very disgruntled look as its tail rattled dangerously. Here, I may as well have been invisible.

That was strange, I reflected as a jaguar passed right in front of me, brushing past without a second glance, instead choosing to stalk a small herd of antelope-like creatures munching on the leaves of a low tree. In the canopy high above, birds chirped and squawked noisily, attacking small bugs with their beaks or plucking at fruit, often letting the excess fall to the ground to be snatched by thieving monkeys.

"You smell odd," Il grumbled.

"Like cat?" I joked. "Of the enormous killer sphinx variety?"

She scoffed. "No, like frankincense."

"I don't like frankincense," El said grumpily. "It smells bad."

I shrugged. "Nothing I can do about it yet. We haven't passed by any river yet." Remembering that I still hadn't drinken any water made my throat ache slightly, and I sighed, brushing a large leaf from my head. My palm came away wet, and a tickle of an idea formed in my head. "But of course,"I muttered, groaning at my stupidity.

"What?" El demanded, still plugging her nose.

I stood on my tip-toes and gently tipped a leaf towards my lips. Water sloshed against the edges as it dripped down into my mouth, and I swallowed in relief, draining the last of it and reaching for another leaf, yanking hard.

"Good, you can wash yourself now," El sniffed, then made a disgusted sound and covered her nose again.

"Of course _my_ would-be-self is a snob," I muttered under my breath. "All right, I'll take a bath."

"You do realize she only just—well—woke up in a place hell-bent on destroying her? And of course the first thing you think of is a shower."

"Not the first thing," El protested. "The first thought was of getting out and saving the others! The next thought was of taking a bath."

Il made a face. "Showers are cleaner. Baths are like... washing in your own filth."

"Baths are more fun! You can't have a bubble shower or play with a rubber-ducks."

"Bubble baths? Pah! And you know what I'd do with a rubber-duck? I'd douse it in fish blood and stick it in a tank with a hungry bull shark."

"That's awful."

"Hey, it's better than tossing a real duck in there."

"When you two are done arguing, you should help me," I called out.

"Are you washing up?" El said curiously.

"Nope. I'm trying to make something I can use that'll carry water." I pulled another large, rubbery leaf off the plant, contemplating it. "Either of you know how to weave?"

"No idea."

"It's going to take me a lot of leaves to figure this out," I muttered, reaching to grab another.

A flash of color caught my eye, and I brushed aside the leaves. There, lying spread-eagle on the ground, was Nagihiko. I knelt beside him, heart pounding, pressing one hand to his chest and another to his cheek. He was horribly cold, clammy, with bloodless lips and spidery veins visible across his skin, but I could feel a very faint, stuttering pulse beneath my fingers.

"At least he's alive," I sighed, pulling back. "Although he's still out cold. I'm going to have to stay here and take care of him until he wakes up."

"Shouldn't we keep moving?" Il asked. "I know this jungle safe, but if the animals change their minds about eating you or there are monsters in this place..."

I looked into the jungle. "I don't think we have much choice. Right now we have nothing that says we won't find danger here, but if we keep moving and find ourselves somewhere else, there's no guarantee that it'll be just as safe, and I don't know how well I could defend the both of us alone."

"Well, there's no point in wasting time!" El said stoutly. "If we have to stay here, we might as well get comfortable!"

"True," I condescended, tapping my chin thoughtfully. "It's a jungle... I've seen exotic creatures... It's probably a rainforest, so I'll need something to keep out water and animals... A place for storage of food and water..." Let's see..."

With no idea how else to do so, I began to strip off long fronds and braid them together in ropes, the ends of which I tied to the lowest-hanging branches of large plants. Across the ropes, I spread large, wide leaves and placed them to rest on the ropes, using the rest to cover the ground. Assuming that the fruit the monkeys and birds had dropped on the ground were edible, they were the only possible source of food; but the birds and monkeys I had seen had been distant, high up in the canopies.

"Would you two gather fruit for me?" I asked El and Il. "The same kind that the birds and the monkeys were eating."

"Roger!"

Which meant that almost an hour later, while I was casting my ruined attempt at some form of sack on the ground, Il and El were lugging a frond filled with fruit.

"This is sooo heavy!" El grunted, panting in exhertion. "A little help here, please!"

"Oh. Thanks, guys." I picked up the frond with a grunt, carrying it over to the shelter.

"What's this?" Il asked, crawling into the "sack". "Did you build us a home, Utau?"

"It's actually really comfy!" El said happily. "Thanks, Utau!"

"Er... Yeah, I did. I'm glad you like it."

"Can we sleep now?" Il asked, her voice muffled. "Is there even anything else to do?"

"I really can't answer that," I replied, shrugging. "I guess I could keep watch."

"'Kay! Wake us when you get tired and we'll watch!"

I chuckled softly when fifteen minutes later, the soft sound of snoring rose from the "sack". At least it was being put to good use. God knows it would've been one horrible sack.

* * *

_The second time was worse._

_So, so much worse._

_The nighttime snowflakes drifting softly through the air wer visible through the dirty windows. The dim light helped to render everything in in a soft monochrome scheme, empty and lifeless as Amu walked through the endless corridors. In her mind's eye, they sprawled and twisted, like in some ghastly illusion, which matched the ominous air and the oddly sick feeling in her stomach._

_Amu felt herself drawn to the third and final floor, down silent, empty corridors, until she reaches a room at the end of a hall, where she heard harsh words and heavy breathing, and a horribly familiar voice sobbing and crying out in pain. Trembling, Amu slipped through the door, the horror of her friend's past finally beginning to dawn on her._

_It only took one look._

_Amu fled the room, down the halls and collapsed in the middle of the second, falling to her hands and knees and dry-heaving, shuddering in horror. She realized now part of why Nadeshiko had never spoken of her past, never mentioned the horrors in her life. Unspeakable horrors... Amu let the sobs cascade from her throat. She had never told them._

_Dimly, she wondered how anyone else could have tolerated it, could have let it happen, because it was disgusting, a crime that Amu felt was certainly punishable by death, revenge. And yet no one had saved her._

_Amu began to retch again, bile burning and flooding from her throat as she realized what she was brought here to do. The reason all the rooms had remained silent, that none had woken, was simply because she was the one who was there to make sure no one heard Nadeshiko scream._

* * *

_Please review...and... I'm sorry. I never intended any offense, or emotional or otherwise._


	6. Arthropods Are Seriously Disgusting!

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Rima  
**

The scent of rainwater and wet dirt hung thick in the air, filling my nostrils and slipping into the blur of my mind like a cool breeze. The surface I lay upon pressed into my cheek, thick and squishy, oddly comforting. I had the dim impression that something was soaking into my clothing, sticking against me as I shifted. Sleep clogged my mind, even as I felt a curious brush across my cheek and opened my eyes.

Now, I have nothing against insects or arachnids. They're clearly vital to the world, I'm fairly sure they're more afraid of us than we are of them, and they're not inherently mean creatures. That being said, it was more than a little jarring to wake up with an enormous red ant poking at me curiously, as if I were some morsel.

I screamed at the top of my lungs and scrambled away, startling the ant, which sped away in surprise and fear. It wasn't my proudest moment, but seeing as most people don't wake up to enormous ants, I thought I could be excused for my rude behavior.

The trees around me rose high into the air, their trunks smooth green and thin with no branches fanning out overhead, the trunks growing close together with hundreds of grey, dried out husks spread out above me like some canopy woven of the stuff. The mud I lay in was thick and squishy, and ringed the edge of a large, shallow pool of water that spread itself through the forest, giving the image of an odd swamp. In the distance, the dark figures of enormous insects crawled through the thick forest. There could be no doubt—somehow, in the time between when I had last been conscious to my awakening now, I had been shrunk down to the size of an ant and had landed in the middle of a forest of grass.

Kusu Kusu was nowhere in sight, as were nothing of any familiarity. My entire body ached uncomfortably, as I'd been lying in an awkward position, like I'd slept upright in a car with my neck craned painfully. (Which, it should be noted, should not have been the case; mud can be much more comfortable than one might imagine.) Upon looking down at myself, I noted that my clothes were wrinkled and smelled rather nasty, and were the same as they had been when I first fell unconscious. I remembered everything, as far as I could tell, although that gave no explanation as to how I had ended up in my current position.

I crawled over to the edge of the puddle and examined my reflection. The black band in my hair was askew and my face was covered in dried mud. My hair, tangled and mussed, held large kinks, and my face looked drawn and haggard. However long I had been out, it seemed I had not eaten or drunk for some time.

Around, there were clear signs of others having been in this area; long strands of glass were torn into pieces and scattered on the ground

"Rima?" Voices echoed through the trees, and I got to my feet, startled. Through the trees burst two tall forms, and I gasped at the sight of them. "Rima, are you all right? We heard screaming!"

"Ikuto?" I said weakly. "Tadase?"

It seemed impossible, but it had to be. Ikuto had thick stubble scattered across his cheeks and dark shadows beneath his eyes. Tadase looked similar. Their hair was greasy and knotted, and both were covered in thin, healing gashes, burns, and odd wounds. There were torn, dirtied backpacks on their backs. There were two long, sharpened sticks in their hands. If I'd not seen the blue hair or the red-violet eyes, I'd have tought they were both feral humans come to eat me.

"Rima. You're awake." Tadase hurried to my side, while Ikuto hung back, watching the forest as if expecting some monster to come charging at out of nowhere.

"Where are we?" I mumbled. "And why do you two look like you've spent a little too much time imitating Bear Gryllis?"

"It's a long story. How are you feeling?" Ikuto asked, his eyes still fixated on the forest of grass.

"My whole body hurts." I winced. "But my head is the worst."

"Here. Drink little sips." Tadase pulled a dented, red metal water bottle from his pocket and handed it to me. "Sorry the water's hot, we don't have any way to keep it cold."

"What happened?" I asked between sips. "From the looks of things, you've been running around in the wild for a while."

"Two weeks." Tadase looked exhausted. "We found you a couple days ago." He began to explain the number of events that had played out over the past couple weeks, bringing up to the present.

"... So, while Utau is dragging Nagihiko around in some jungle, we've been waiting for you to wake up."

"Sorry to have kept you waiting," I said dryly. "But I've normally got a weak constitution when it comes to evil things and magical labyrinths trying to kill us."

Ikuto chuckled. "It isn't like you've really slowed us down. This place that we're in is enormous. Well." He paused. "It is for us."

I got to my feet unsteadily. "Seeing as you've been waltzing around for a week, you wouldn't happen to have any food or water, would you?"

"No, it was eaten by ants," Ikuto said easily, "angry red ants that like to roam around in this area. We were hoping you would wake up soon so we could move out of the area."

"Seriously?" I gaped.

He chuckled. "Nah, I'm just kidding with you. Most of the bugs are more frightened of us than we are of them."

Tadase tossed me a granola bar and handed me a water flask. "The ants think we're... interesting."

"Interesting?" I raised an eyebrow. "Interesting like, a new type of food?"

"No," Ikuto said cheerfully. "But we really should get moving. Not all of the insects or arachnids we've come across are that friendly."

"Well, so the ants are all right, I get that," I said through a mouthful of granola, "but what about others? Spiders, butterflies, caterpillars, the like?"

"Well," Tadase said thoughtfully, "the spiders avoid as as best as they can. The butterflies seem frightened of us, and caterpillars don't really seem to mind our presence."

"We need to avoid the scorpions and the mantises, though," Ikuto added. He pulled away one ragged sleeve to show me a long, puffy welt running down his forearm. "The scorpions have a real nasty temper."

"And really disgusting stingers." Tadase shuddered. "At least they don't stalk us like mantises do."

I shivered, glancing nervously up at the grass stalks. "Now I see them everywhere."

"The sooner we get out of here, the better," Ikuto said. "Can you walk?"

I took few steps forward, then nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be. Got any more of those granola bars?"

As we walked, my feet began to ache and my legs burned lightly. "So, what just so I can be on my guard, what exactly do the scorpions and the mantises look like?"

"Well," Tadase scratched his head idly, "the scorpions are about my height, and a dark, glossy brown. They have small pincers—well, small in comparison to the rest of their bodies. They have curved barbs, of course, but they drip a bit, so you'd have to be careful of that. That's how Ikuto's arm swelled."

"Ugh."

"Yeah. They're not normal scorpions, I don't think—they run in packs. But then, there are fire ants, enormous butterflies I swear I've in books about the Amazon, and cicadas. We ran into them when we first entered the grass, but since then haven't spotted them. The mantises, though, they're the same shade of the grass. They're the solitary hunters, but they're harder to spot because they're so well camouflaged."

"They're the exact same shade as the grass," Ikuto called back. "And they twist their bodies to match the same shape as a bent blade, or they just blend into them. Sometimes we're lucky enough to see them before they attack, which is lucky, because when they do attack, it's like this sharp, spiked jab that knocks you back and grabs you. Then they try to bite of your head."

"They're strong, but if you manage to give a good kick to their gut, their grip loosens a bit, and then you can wriggle out and run. They don't chase you like the scorpions do."

"Ugh. How do you successfully fend off the scorpions?"

"Ahh..." Tadase shrugged sheepishly. "We haven't exactly figured that one out yet. That first time, they just ran away like they were terrified. It might be some bigger predator roaming around."

"Oh." Not quite what I was hoping for. "Well, then."

"Yup."

"So... our guardian characters?"

"Normally they hide out in their eggs." Tadase slid a hand in his pocket. "Kiseki told me it's too dangerous for him to just be floating around."

"Of course it is," came the muffled voice, "and we'd serve no better purpose whether or not we spent our time in our outside our eggs!"

"And it's scary~nya!"

"Also, they like to nap," Ikuto told me.

I rolled my eyes. "So... I guess it might be a while until I get Kusu Kusu back?"

"I don't know." Tadase shook his head. "We haven't heard from Amu in some time; there might be a problem." His tone was worried.

I tried to shrug indifferently. "That's all right. I'm sure it'll turn out fine. After all, it's Amu, right?" I smiled lightly. "Stubborn as hell and almost stupidly righteous."

Ikuto smiled fondly. "Pretty much describes her."

* * *

_The halls of the school were cold and empty as Amu followed Nadeshiko through the halls, her breathing shallow. She stuffed papers into her bag, tearing the paper, but she took no notice, tossing fearful glances over her shoulder._

_The school was run-down and old, with boarded-up classrooms, weak heat and poor lighting, but Nadeshiko navigated her way with a nervous ease, slipping deeper and deeper into the darkness. She appeared to be running from something, her shoes clacking against the broken linoleum floors._

_"Nadeshiko?"_

_The girl let out a strangled gasp as a boy stepped out of the shadows. He was shorter than her, with average looks and a slightly awkward build, messy dark hair and broken glasses resting in a crooked position on his nose. His eyes were deep brown, almost black, and his lips looked slightly soft and feminine. His clothes were ill-suited, giving his wiry-muscled arms a slightly scrawny, malnourished look._

_He moved forward, reaching out to take her hand, but she jolted back, and he frowned. "Nadeshiko, what are doing in this part of the building?"_

_"I could ask you the same thing," She said tightly. "Shouldn't you be getting home?"_

_The boy frowned. "You've been avoiding me. I wanted to know why, so I followed you," He said bluntly._

_"Stalker," She hissed venomously. "You stay away from me."_

_"Nade, I don't understand," He said helplessly. "What's going on? Why are you avoiding me? Did... I do something wrong?"_

_She shook her head frantically. "I don't know you. You're not who I thought you were, I know it. They told me so, and they're never wrong." She tugged at the edges of her hoodie._

_"Who? Nadeshiko, what are you talking about? It's me, Hisashi, remember?" The boy frowned as he caught sight of purple skin. "What's that on your shoulder?"_

_She backed away. "Don't touch me."_

_He moved forward slowly, placatingly. "Nade, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." She watched him with mistrustful eyes as he inched forward, his hands outstretched, and tugged away the edge of her hoodie, letting it drop to the floor._

_Hisashi's eyes went wide as he took in the sight of her arms and shoulders. There were large, dark bruises, some half-healing and yellowed, other bluish and fresh. Without thinking, he reached out and let the pad of his thumb brush the wounds._

_Immediately she went berserk. "Let go!" Nadeshiko screeched, struggling, but Hisashi moved forward to restrain her, refusing to let go. His eyes had gone dark with anger as he took in the yellowing bruises scattered along her arms. On her shoulders, thick lines left a perfect impression of fingers._

_"Who did this to you?" Hisashi demanded, lifting a hand to her cheek. She flinched away, her eyes dilated with fear. "Nadeshiko, It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you."_

_"Liar," Nadeshiko sobbed. "You—I've seen you watching me, you're going to kill me, just like everyone else—You've been drugging me, trying to keep my quiet, but I won't, I won't, I won't—"_

_Hisashi went pale. "Nadeshiko, when was the last time you took your medication?"_

_"No!" She shrieked, ripping herself from his grip and stumbling backwards. "Don't touch me! You can't make me, I won't do it, I won't!"_

_He inched forward carefully, trying to soothe her. "I won't hurt you, Nade. Look—no weapons, no drugs. See? He emptied his pockets; out fell wrappers, tickets. "I'm not going to hurt you."_

_"Go away!" Nadeshiko ripped the bag from her shoulder with frightening strength and hurled it at his head. He caught it, startled, and she shoved past him, sprinting away. He watched her go, his brow lined with deep concern._

_"What's happening to you?" He murmured, and followed her, but Amu stepped forward, mentally holding him back. For a moment, he hesitated, then turned away, determination in his eyes, muttering under his breath. The hoodie lay lifeless on the floor, forgotten._

* * *

"So, got any good stories to tell?" I asked, munching on a donut. After a couple hours of walking, we had taken a rest, sitting one enormous pebbles and snacking very lightly. My feet throbbed and my body ached, but there was little we could do but rest every so often—we had to keep moving. "I know we're in an evil labyrinth or whatever, but have you seen anything? Done anything cool?"

Tadase winced. "Most of it's painful."

"We got attacked by evil vines in a hedge maze," Ikuto said. "With poisonous thorns. They go away after a while if you keep soaking them in water, but I think we might still have scars."

"Really?"

"They're not pleasant to look at." Tadase grimaced. "They're kind of... red and raw-looking. They're like hives with more hives on those hives."

"And they leak pus for weeks before the swelling goes away," Ikuto said.

"Oh. Gross. Was the maze at least beautiful?"

Ikuto shrugged. "Dunno. It was too foggy. We were in a maze of ancient tunnels."

"They smelled old," Tadase said helpfully. "I almost think we saw a couple other kids, but maybe not."

"What do you mean?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Well," Ikuto said, taking a bite of donut, "they almost looked normal, except they were all holding these little flames in their hands, and they had weapons with them. Like, bows and arrows, swords—I think I saw throwing knives."

"One of them, this geeky, awkward kind of girl, she looked like she couldn't bench twenty pounds, and she didn't have any weapons on her, but they were treating her like she was the leader."

"There were seven of them, weren't there?" Ikuto noted. "And all of them, except for that first girl, looked like they were around sixteen or seventeen."

"Weird. But you didn't talk to them?"

"No point." Ikuto shrugged. "They could've been monsters, illusions, whatever. We might have been walking straight into a trap."

"True. What else?" I questioned as we stood, packing the rest of our food away and began our trek once more.

"Well, there was also this place in what looked like space. There was this really tall, really pale guy in some old-fashioned warrior costume. He was pretty bad off, all bleeding and covered in wounds—it was horrible. He had this sort of broken look in his eyes." Tadase shuddered. "He kept murmuring something under his breath—it sounded a lot like, 'I'm sorry'."

"He was seeing someone who wasn't there, I think," Ikuto said quietly. "Kept murmuring about his brother and how he just wanted him to love him back. He had this flash of lucidity, I think, but he didn't really say anything, just looked at us like we had to leave."

"So we did. We couldn't bring him with us, because he was too injured to move, and we couldn't stay with him, because he wouldn't let us." Tadase couldn't seem to get the broken man off his mind. "We just... had to leave him there."

I looked down, suddenly regretting my assault of questions and fixating my gaze on the grass forest beyond us. The air seemed to have gone sour; even the dead blades of grass seemed menacing, dangerous, taking the form of beasts that seemed to come ever closer.

But wait... the beasts were coming closer...

My breath seized in my lungs, and I let out a cry, scrambling to my feet. "RUN!"

"What?" Tadase and Ikuto turned to look, but it was too late. From the rustling underbrush, the glossed claws first appeared, then vicious heads with multiple large, beady eyes, their mouths leaking froth and pincers squeezing as they approached us. Then came the long, armored bodies, glinting in the dim sunlight. Finally, rising up from behind them in a vicious arc, beads of venom welling at the tip in hungered expectation. There were twelve of them. We were utterly surrounded.

"Scorpions," I breathed.

"Run," Ikuto hissed out of the corner of his mouth. Out of the corner of my eyes, I barely comprehended that the two had character-transformed.

"What?!"

_"RUN!"_

I turned on my heel and sprinted away fast as my cruelly short legs could take me, tripping and stumbling, slashing my legs and arms open in thin cuts. Behind me, the quick, scratchy skitter of arthropods followed—there were four. I stole a glance behind me and shrieked, dodging wildly out of the way as the stingers lashed down, slamming into the ground at an extreme angle.

One lunged and slammed onto me, heavy body trapping my legs as its legs twitch. Froth dripped onto my shirt and fizzles nastily through the fabric, stinging the place right over my heart as its pincers click and snap hungrily. It lifted its stinger, barb swelling, and I was screaming, groping and writhing wildly in a futile attempt to escape, before my hand caught on something small and jagged. My hand flew up and smashed the pebble into its mouth, while I simultaneously kicked at its underbelly, and it choked, falling back.

The barest second of choking scorpion allowed me to wriggle out and and fly away, scrabbling my hands on the ground and throwing each of the objects at it. It hissed in anger as a surprisingly well-aimed stick jabs it in the eye and punctures it. It scrambles backwards, disoriented and writhing in pain.

The eyes.

Before my courage can fail me, I snatch up the largest stick I can handle and run forward with a cry, startling it, and throw myself at the nearest, a death-grip on the stick as it spears it right in its left eye and digs in deep. Venom splashes my cheek and burns like fire. It screams and thrashes for a long second, then goes still—I've stabbed clean through its brain.

I scramble back, breathing hard. I can practically hear sobs coming unheeded from my throat as I stare in horror at the dead scorpion before me, its feet still twitching madly. There were three bodies before me: two are dead, one choked by rock, another stabbed through the brain, and one writhing in pain on the ground, its eyes crushed out, before it stopped moving. The last seems to have fled. Three dead scorpions. I have just killed three giant scorpions by myself.

It takes an undetermined amount of time to shake myself from my stupor, but I inched forward nervously. The legs have stopped twitching, and I shudder as I take hold of the stick, trying to tug it out. It won't budge.

"I guess I have monstrous strength on an adrenaline rush," I joked to myself, but my voice sounded weak and shaking. I need another stick.

I grab another from the ground and grip it tightly, before hurrying back the direction I came. Ikuto and Tadase...

Overhead, I hear an ear-piercing shriek, an awful cry. There is an enormous thump on the ground, and I tumble off my feet, crawling forwards in terror. I just made it to the clearing in time to see the enormous head of a large blue bird appear, eyes bright and beetle-black.

The remaining nine scorpions are running mad, skittering about. It pecked at them, plunging its beak into their flesh, piercing through their armor like sword into flesh. They made a horrible screeching sound—seriously, I did not know that scorpions made sounds like that, it's horrible, like a death wail—and writhe on the ground, tails lashing out madly. The bird ignored them, eyeing us.

Ikuto and Tadase were breathless, their clothes ragged and torn with a few new welts across their chests and forearms. Other than that, they appeared unhurt.

It doesn't matter. One second, the three of us are crowding together, frozen in place and terrified by this new monster. The next, Ikuto has been snatched by two enormous claws, and Tadase and I lunged forward, grabbing at the claws as we were up devastatingly high in the air, clinging desperately for life as were borne into the sky.

* * *

_There were things in life, Amu learned, horrible things, that were more difficult to explain until she had seen the full picture. The problem was, sometimes that full picture was worse than the pieces that put it together._

_She had seen Nadeshiko beaten black and blue and bloody. She herself had destroyed the medication that would have kept her friend sane. She was forced to watch as she shrunk back from her closest friends in fear and deluded mistrust. And she had watched as Nadeshiko herself knew it was happening and could do nothing to stop it._

_The final pieces were the worst._

_The mental hospital is silent. It is witching-hour, and the woman from before, the woman who beat her bloody, stands in front of her, a matchbox clutched in her bony hands, her teeth yellow and crooked. She lifts a thin finger to her wide, smiling mouth, shushing her silently. A box of matches falls to the floor at Nadeshiko's feet, aflame._

_And then she is gone._

_But that is not what Nadeshiko sees. She sees the woman still standing there, cackling at her, and she sobs in fear, sinking down against the wall as tears pour down her cheeks. It seems that she has snapped, has broken through the fragile walls of her sanity,as the wicked laughter fills her ears and paralyzes her. She buries her face in her hands, cowering on the floor._

_"Go away, go away," Nadeshiko whimpers, rocking back and forth. "Go away!"_

_Amu can't see or hear what Nadeshiko sees, but she knows, sees as Nadeshiko, blinded and frozen, snatches at the box of matches and tosses it onto the bed, setting it on fire. The woman has still not left Nadeshiko's hallucinations, and she throws everything in a chaos. Things catch fire and burn. Wind—Nadeshiko's power with the wind, the blessing and the curse, spreads the fire. And soon, everything is awash in red and orange and gold, fire licking at the wallpaper. Nadeshiko screams, instinctively pushing wind at the heat, but the flames only grow, higher and higher. She is trapped._

_In the distance, screams find their way to Amu's ears, and in desperation she directs this towards the sobbing girl. Nadeshiko breaks from her stupor: they are that of children, innocent children who will die. For the moment, if only that, she is free, and she herself has brought death to the orphanage._

_The house is burning, swallowed by fire that has grown too quickly, and she holds in a sob. Everything she knows is dying, and it is on her hands. She bursts through the room beside hers, trying to focus her roiling emotions, her mad thoughts dashing chaotically about her head._

_It is a boy's room, Amu sees, and the boy from before—Hisashi—is dying on the bed. Nadeshiko collapses beside him, agonized cries pouring from her throat as she laments her great tragedy._

_The flames still roar around her, still calling their death-knell, and Nadeshiko tries in vain to stop the fire. Amu, terrified for her friend and for the lives of the children, does her best to help her, lending her all the power she can, and Nadeshiko succeeds. _

_The fire has stopped, but the blood still runs from her hands._

_The house is horribly silent as she makes her way through the quiet corridors and pushes out the back door, hanging on its hinges._

_High above in the sky, as the girl with violet hair flees from her sorrows into the night, Amu sees bodies covered in white sheets, hidden from their view. As the last body is carried out by the firemen, the voices of children rise to a wail, their anguished lament rising over the smoky night sky. Amu cries with them, for the lives lost, for the lives ruined, and for the deaths yet to come._

* * *

_Please review!_


	7. EVERYBODY NEEDS TO SMILE!

_Read and review!_

___All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Kairi**

"Go go go go go!" Yaya yelled at me, snatching up a stone from the ground and hurtling it at the face of the manticore, which squealed a trumpet-like wail of fury and lashed its tail at us. I threw myself out of the way, landing hard on the ground as sizzling barbs pierced the ground where I had been less than a millisecond ago with a metallic clang.

The manticore reared back on its hind legs, letting out a brass roar as its leathery wings beat the air. I snatched my blade off the ground and shot a bolt of lighting at its face, and it screamed and rose up its onto its hind legs, thrashing as its body crackled with energy. It stumbled and fell to its side, body still twitching. I approached it cautiously with my sword outstretched, inching forward slowly. The manticore was still but for the unsteady rise and fall of its body.

Quick as a flash, the manticore swept one paw in an arch, knocking my legs out from beneath me, and I shouted as I tumbled backwards. The manticore arched onto its feet, throwing its enormous body at me with its claws extended.

Yaya gave a shout, and a battalion of rubber ducklings smashed into the side of the manticore's half-human face, pecking madly and driving it off course just enough to miss me by bare inches. It batted them away and tried to shoot its enormous barbs at the ducklings, snarling, and I shot off, slamming my blade into the rocky wall of the rift valley with a grunt of exertion.

Electricity surged into the wall, crackling with light as the rocks trembled and came raining down on our heads. The manticore screamed in fury, baring its rows of teeth at me as it tried to dodge the avalanche of rocks smashing into the valley floor.

"Let's go!" I shouted.

"Wait!" Yaya cried, dashing away at the speed of light. I yelled after her, but she ignored me, dodging the falling rocks and snatching something up, stuffing it into a sack of projectiles that hung at her side.

"Yaya!" I screamed, flying towards her, but she was already out, snatching my hand and dragging me back, and we sprinted away, the trumpet-like screaming echoing in our ears behind us, dashing through the trees and into the thick of the forest. Behind us, the manticore was screaming, its brass cry rising above the ear-shattering clash of rock against rock.

With a hideous half-human face, the body of a lion, striped scarlet fur, bat wings and the tail of a scorpion that shot poisoned barbs, the manticore had been a horrific sight, made all the more horrific by the fact that we had been its preferred prey. In the rift valley that Yaya had discovered me in, we had come across many monsters—chimaeras, hydrae, harpies—but none had been as particularly hungry for our flesh as the manticore had been.

In terms on non-mythical creatures, the animals had held either little interest or too much interest in our antics. The herbivores such as the tapirs and pangolins avoided us at all cost, while the tigers and the jaguars stalked us constantly, held at bay with fire and our mild range of character-transformed weaponry.

In short, the jungle we found ourselves in was anything but safe, but at the moment, we had no choice but to remain within the jungle until we could find our way out from the jungle and into yet another danger. As Amu had informed us, most of the others had already woken, and our imperative was to find the others and stick together until we could find some way out.

"What the hell?!" I demanded the second the edge of the valley was far out of sight, snatching her and throwing my arms around her. "Don't do that!"

"I'm fine, Kairi." She kissed my cheek and wriggled away, reaching into the sack at her side and pulling out a barb.

"Why did you risk everything just to get that?" I groaned, running a hand through my hair.

"Don't you think there are more manticores in here?" Yaya asked as she stashed a number of projectiles within a sack at her belt.

"Well, yes, most likely," I admitted. "We've come across so many monsters, I'm fairly sure they've had to breed somehow. Problem is, I don't know how much longer we can survive on daily transformations." I rubbed at my face, exhausted. "We've had to deal with transforming multiple times a day."

"Which is why this will be helpful." She plucked out her sticks, using the knife-like barb to sharpen them. "Once these are sharp, we can break the barb open and dip our weapons in them."

I looked at her for a moment, then shook my head in disbelief. "Now, why didn't I think of that?"

"Because it was a risky and stupid move, and that would have meant you considering picking up the poisonous barbs instead of just focusing on getting away as a legitimate option," Yaya replied. "And you're more focused on getting food, water and shelter than on weapons."

"I suppose so. Speaking of food, we lost the pack back there, didn't we?" I sighed. "You wouldn't happen to have another randomly acquired bag on your person, would you?"

"'Fraid not," Yaya said apologetically. "But maybe we can build one out of leaves or something?"

"Hmm." I contemplated for a moment, then braced myself and tugged large leaves off a stalk. "Do you still remember how to make twine?"

"Do I ever." Yaya scoffed. "I can't believe I'm actually using that lame knowledge I learned at that camp back in eighth grade. Or that our parents bought that trash they spewed at us."

"It was a good camp," I protested, joining her as we began twisting strands of plant fiber into thin, durable rope. "and we learned a lot."

"You did," Yaya corrected, "and I spent most of my time doing the chores because everything we learned is apparently only useful when you get stuck in magical labyrinths with large tropical forests and no access to the real world."

* * *

_"This is so lame," Yaya complained, tossing away her half-finished woven basket in frustration. "What, exactly, is the point of this? When am I ever going to need to weave a basket?"_

_Seiyo Academy had received an offer from Sunshine and Rainbow Camping Experiences Inc. as a sort of school-wide fundraiser to raise liberal art funds. By buying the Happy Happy Campers package and sending the students to the five-hour sessions every day during the summer months, twenty-five percent of the proceeds would go to Seiyo Academy._

_From the brochure, it had seemed like a very suitable place, a little camp situated comfortably on the beautiful island of Yoshinoyama,filled with all sorts of interesting activities, such as archery, rock-climbing, finding food in the forest, fishing (okay, so that one wasn't as interesting) and apparently, imperative life skills. In real life, they learned basket weaving skills and how to smile in such a way that you would scare the living daylights out of anyone more than you would if you were a homicidal maniac recently escaped from the asylum. And how to share polite conversations during lunchtime without horking up the "mystery meats" and the Happy Happy "bento". On the upside, the pre-school age students seemed to love the camp. On the downside, none of the other grades did._

_"Now, now, Yaya, every happy happy camper needs to keep a positive attitude and smile!" From out of nowhere, a camp counselor popped up right behind her, eliciting a shriek from the girl. The counselor flashed her a bright smile and spoke in her usual chirpy tone, "What's our motto?"_

_"Um. Happy happy camping needs happy happy campers?"_

_"Great!" Another counselor, this time a man with permed hair, popped up from her other side. "Now, let's sing the Happy Happy Campers Song! Eeeeeverybody needs to smiiiiiiile..." Yaya put her head in her hands and moaned in pain._

_Amu sweat-dropped, whispering to Rima, "And I thought Yaya was hyper."_

_"You'd think that Yaya would enjoy such a peppy atmosphere," Nagihiko commented._

_Kukai shrugged. "Clearly everyone draws a line, even on their extremes. Whoa, Kairi, how did you manage to finish yours so quickly?"_

_"I'm not sure." Kairi turned his neat, finished basket over in his hands. "I suppose it simply came naturally to me. That's odd."_

_"Not as odd as the counselors. I swear, they aren't human," Rima hissed back. "You know that meatloaf crap they serve here?"_

_"Ugh. That stuff?" Amu shuddered. "I found a nail in mine."_

_"Raaaaaiiiiiinboooows are soooooooo preeeeeettyyyyy..."_

_"They were eating it like Yaya eats candy." They all shuddered. _

_"Wait. what kind of nail?" Nagihiko asked in interest._

_"A fingernail. The metal nail was in the broccoli, remember?"_

_"No, that was the pudding, wasn't it? The tapioca pudding."_

_"That's right, I forgot. Hey, wait, that can't be sanitary—"_

_"Come on, you two!" The male counselor said happily, appearing behind them. "It's a spontaneous sing-along! Aaaaaand when you're feeeeeeeling sad or blue..."_

_"I must admit I'm feeling pretty sad and blue right now, but I sincerely doubt that joining in on a 'spontaneous sing-along' will make me feel any better," Kairi remarked, and they all snickered._

_"You know what you gotta dooooooo!" The other counselor sang. The rest of the campers were utterly sullen and silent._

_"I know what I 'gotta do'," Yaya grumbled. "I 'gotta' set this stupid basket on fire and toss it at their heads."_

_The others sweat-dropped. "That's so violent."_

_"How can I not be violent when my ears are bleeding?!"_

_"Be a happy happy camperrrrrr...!"_

_"That's actually really unhelpful advice," Amu noted. "If you're feeling sad and blue, then how exactly are you supposed to make yourself feel better by suddenly being a 'happy happy camper'?"_

_"You've... actually got a point there," Rima said thoughtfully. "I mean, really, how are you supposed to just... be happy? Most people can't just suddenly 'pop' into happiness."_

_"A happy happy happy happy camperrrrrr!"_

_"I honestly didn't know it was humanely possible to smile in such a way," Nagihiko commented._

_"It isn't," Kukai said absently. "I think they're aliens."_

_"That makes sense. Clearly they got kicked off their planet and had to come here."_

_"You know, I shouldn't actually be able to believe that," Yaya hissed._

_"We're all happy happy happy happy happy happy happy happy campers!"_

_"That's a tongue-twister, for sure," Rima noted. "Can you say happy eight times fast?"_

_"... No."_

_"Uh oh!" The girl camper shouted. "I don't think everyone was singing that time! Let's do it again! Take it away, Toshi!"_

_Yaya smashed her head repeatedly against her basket as the two counselors began to dance what appeared to be a combination between an Irish jig, the Chicken Dance, and Gangnam Style._

_"Come on, everybody! Let's do the Happy Happy Campers dance!"_

_"I hate this place," Yaya mumbled. "I hate it, I hate it, I hate it..."_

_"Come on, Yaya!" One of the counselors sang. "Turn that frown upside down! Come and dance with us!"_

_"Noooooooooooooooooo!"_

_The counselors completely ignored Yaya's protests and drag her along with a startled Nagihiko and Kukai beside them. Nagihiko, utterly bewildered, made a weak attempt to copy the counselors' dance moves, glaring at Rima, who is snickering as she records the whole thing on her phone. Kukai, finding the whole thing amusing, makes everyone laugh by joining the rendition of "Happy Happy Campers" in an extremely off-key voice. Yaya stands there pouting._

_"Come on, Yaya!" Amu, accidentally character-changed with Ran, cheered and waved her hands in excitement. Yaya flushed in embarrassment and mumbled incoherently until the song and dancing ended._

_"That was lovely!" Creepy Counselor #1 declared. "Who wants to do it again?"_

_There was complete and utter silence._

_"Whoever preforms this time with us gets a free cookie!"_

_The silence continued as the students shifted uncomfortably; several of the children had sudden, unwavering interests in their woven baskets, while others glanced around in an attempt at nonchalance. (The cookies provided by Sunshine and Rainbows Inc. were not considered in any way edible, let alone appetizing.)_

_"...Whoever sings the loudest gets to leave right after!"_

_"EEEEEEVERYBOOOOODY NEEEEEEEEDS TO SMIIIIIIILE...!"_

_"Or wait, maybe they're drugging the food!" Amu exclaimed after it was over and the counselors had decided that no one was loud enough to go home. ("Dang it!" Yaya said angrily.) They sat in the run-down cafeteria together, forcing themselves not to hork up their lunches. "Maybe they really are human, but they're high or something!"_

_Nagihiko frowned. "They eat the same food that we do."_

_They glanced at a large group of preschoolers, who were happily devouring the mystery-meat-of-the-day and singing the "Happy Happy Campers" song at the top of their lungs, face bright with wide smiles._

_"Well, but they were kind of that way before," Kairi said nervously, and the rest nodded their agreement. Almost unconsciously, they simultaneously pushed away their plates._

* * *

"I hated that stupid camp," Yaya said huffily, clumsily braiding the twine. "It was absolutely ridiculous. And those camp counselors should have been kicked back to their home planet."

"Now, now, Yaya," I said, smiling, "human-alien segregation is wrong. If gender, ethnicity, religion and sexual preference aren't boundaries in our society, then neither should species, right?"

"People aren't that accepting," She protested. "I've never met anyone who supports incest or not looked down on large age differences."

"... Touché." I held up the basket in satisfaction. "Good enough." I took the leaf and fished around the ground, plucking a small, sharp twig and poking tiny holes through the edges of the basket, binding them together.

"Good thing you were good at that useless skill," Yaya commented, lengthening her strand of twine and braiding it into rope. "Otherwise it would've taken more than just a few hours to make that thing."

I chuckled. "You're not too bad with the twine, either."

"Because making twine is an awesome skill!" Yaya held her unfinished strand up. "Who knows when you'll need to make string or rope? And you can make rope out of anything, even plastic bags! Basket-weaving, on the other hand..."

"I would contradict you, but you have a point there."

"See!"

"Back on topic..." I chuckled. "Once you finish with that rope, we can loop some of it through the holes in the basket like straps so we don't have to carry it with our hands."

"Good." Yaya nodded, eyes still fixed on the twine. "Do you want me to scout for food now, or stay and guard... well, everything we have left?"

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "On the upside, if you went, you'd be able to get more food—you can climb up into the trees and get fruit, and you're better at recognizing edible plants. But, well..."

She sighed. "Rubber duckies and lullabies are not as good as a defense as swords that produce lightning?" She pouted. "My rubber duckies did save your life back there... And besides, I won't need a good defense if I'm quick and quiet."

"And you're better at making twine," I said defensively. She shot me a look. "All right, you can go."

"Good." She got to her feet, tossing me the twine and brushing off her pants, striding off and calling over her shoulder, "Don't wait up! And wipe that look off your face, I'll be fine!"

"She is," I said to myself. "She will be."

I kept my focus on the twine, lending some attention to my surroundings. The silence of the forest was deafeningly soft, and it was difficult to keep my attention on the twisting fibers within my fingers. The minutes passed, and they were drawn out until it seemed that hours had passed, and yet in truth it could only have been a short matter of time; the sun remained at its peak in the sky high above my head. Perhaps it had been several sunlit days, or I had found myself frozen in time, when the canopy of green above me rustled softly.

I stiffened and flicked my gaze upwards, tightening my grip upon the thin rope in my fingers. The verdant matter rustled, and with the grace of a practiced athlete, Yaya swung down from the lowest branch of the tree, landing with a soft thump on the warm, soft floor beneath her feet.

Her shirt had been removed and twisted into a bundle, which bulged and swung from her side as she straightened. She set it down beside me and positioned herself accordingly, her gaze pleasant and cheerful. "I got the food!"

I smiled and grasped the makeshift sack, pulling it open and drawing the woven basket towards me. From out of the shirt poured countless berries, some larger tropical fruit, a large number of nuts, and plantains.

"I thought that since we normally have a fire going at night to scare off some of the animals, we could cook some plantains as well." Yaya grinned. "I know how much you love plantains."

I chuckled. "Oh, how I love plantains. You know me—I eat them whenever I get the chance. That starchy taste..."

"It's not as if we have the luxury of being picky." I turned a plantain over in my hands. "We take what we can get, right?"

"They taste like potatoes," Yaya commented, bumping me with her shoulder. "I like potatoes."

"Whatever you say."

Yaya laughed, then sobered suddenly. "I also discovered something else—ruins of some civilization. They're completely abandoned—but they're in good condition. We could take shelter there."

"That's good." I poured the fruit into the basket, looping the twine through the spaces between the drying fronds. "Which direction?"

"There... but, Kairi, the thing is, they were in really good condition. They were these sort of stone houses, with these carvings in the walls, and they seemed as if they were recently abandoned. Where the plants should have grown through the streets and the vines and moss that should have sunken into the buildings, weren't there at all. And nothing looked like any of the ruins I've seen before—everything was covered in some sort of hieroglyphics and runes."

I contemplated for a moment. "Well... I don't know..."

"I know that seems weird, but I think we should go anyway." She sighed. "But there's something off there. I think that we should camp out here first, and then visit there tomorrow, so we're at full strength just in case."

"Good idea," I agreed. "I was hoping you'd say that, actually." I held up the twine, which was messy and and flimsy where I had taken over and Yaya had left off. "I don't think I should be making the twine anymore."

* * *

_The tall buildings of the city cast long shadows across the ground, broken by the glow of the city lights, along with the chatter of voices echoing off the walls of streets were sparse and indifferent as Nadeshiko sprinted through them, eyes wary and frightened. Dressed in rags with faded bruises still lingering on her limbs, she shivered in the cold and clutched at her arms, her breath faintly visible in the cool air. _

_Amu followed her as she darted into a darkened alley, her throat bobbing with an audible clack. Something dark and sharp was barely visible within the tight, shaking grip of her friend's fist, something that dripped thick, dark liquid lines down her fingers and onto the ground. Bile hng at the back of her throat, but she knew she was not here to stop her—as always, she knew she was here to enable her._

_Nadeshiko came to a stop, her chest rising and falling, unseen by the light of the world within this one malevolent alleyway tucked into a crevasse of the night. The shadows within the hidden pocket began to coalesce, swirling into a dark form, almost as if the alleyway was pulling in on itself. Maggots seemed to burst into Amu's stomach, and she nearly doubled over, trying not to retch as a sudden pain squeezed at her head; it felt almost as if a hand had reached within her skull and was squeezing her brain, trying to mash it to a pulp. A rotten scent filled the air._

_The Lock and Key glowed around her neck, and the pain receded enough for Amu to stand straight. The darkness was curling around Nadeshiko, who stood straight and stiff as a board; her hand was shaking visibly. Amu became aware of a vile hiss in her ear, a high-pitched, acidic-sweet voice whispering in a sing-song tone with breath so close she could feel it brush her skin._

**_Pour the plaster for the skin  
_****_Drink the blood 'til it's all soaked in  
_****_Scalp them for hair and rip off their toes  
_****_Bottle their screams and painful woes  
_****_Fingers make it all worthwhile  
_****_Steal the teeth to make a smile!_**

_"Enough." Nadeshiko's voice quivered with fear and disgust at the abhorrent rhyme. "I—I have it."_

**_What a darling,_**_ The voice purred, like nails scratching against chalk, like metal against metal. The Lock and Key glowed bright, almost blindingly so. __**You brought me my sight.**_

_The shadows extended, and Amu help in a gasp—though the darkness was shadowed, she could see the vague outlines of body parts, ripped arms, part of a torso, a leg with the flesh its base shredded some disconnected and hanging simply by the malevolent power of the shadows. Mismatched fingers torn from odd bodies hung stretched towards her, and Nadeshiko's trembling hand reached out to drop two small round objects into the thing's "hand."_

_The darkness seemed to swell as the objects disappeared into the shadowed, incomplete hand. There was a sickly wind, and suddenly two bloodshot, twitching eyes hung suspended in the air, bobbing slightly._

_"There." A thick sob wrenched its way from Nadeshiko's throat, and she fell back. Her hand was drenched in blackening blood. "That's it. Now—now go away."_

**_You don't think you can escape me so easily?_**_ The creature moved forward, and Nadeshiko closed her eyes, shuddering and choking as the figure bunched around her body, caressing her cheek with the rotting stolen fingers. __**You haven't earned your freedom.**_

_"You—you said this was the last thing you needed me to get for you." Nadeshiko's voice was hoarse. "You said you'd let me go. You said you'd let everyone go."_

**_I told you I had had a task. You haven't finished it yet,_**_ It hissed. __**I have plans for you, darling. All you have to do is be in the right place at the right time, and I'll do all the rest.**_

_"But..." Tears spilled down her cheeks. "You—you promised you'd let everyone go."_

**_Your soul belongs to me,_**_ It murmured in her ear. __**And I still have plans for you. You, my little pretty, must clean your wear in the golden neighborhoods.**_

_"That's it?" Nadeshiko's eyes widened. "You want me to wash my clothes in the rich neighborhoods?"_

**_Of course, dearie... Nothing more, nothing less... Simply... let things happen as they should, and you will be there when I require your services._**_ The eyes twitched and flickered, right beside her right ear. __**But I warn you, my darling... don't forget, you belong to me, and if you stray from my side... **__The fingers twitched towards her neck, grasping lightly and squeezing just enough to cut off her air. __**I still need a heart.**_

_Nadeshiko stumbled backwards, utterly terrified, and fled the alley. As Amu whirled around to follow her, she caught a sob of fear. The darkness swirled up, aiming an odd little point of shadows straight at the horrified girl, as if to puncture her, stab through her—_

_Amu reacted immediately, throwing up her hands. The Lock and Key flashed blindingly bright, and the thing let out a wail, drawing back the shadow-needle into the darkness. Amu, Breathing heavily, turned and tried to flee after her friend._

_With a whoosh of air and a flash of movement, the shadows extended into a tall, impenetrable wall, rising high above her and trapping her in the alley with the monstrous thing._

**_Hello, little Guardian_**_, the thing hissed at Amu. __**It's very late. Don't you know that little girls should be sleeping?**_

_And it lunged at her, rotting fingers extended towards her face with bloody teeth bared and twitching eyes dripping red._

_Agonized screams echoed from the hidden crevasse, utterly unheard by the ignorant beings within the safety of the bright city lights._

* * *

"Wake up."

The stars were dying as I cracked open bleary eyes, a thin stain of morning infecting the sweet dark of the night. The clean scent of rain and morning air registered in my nose, and I breathed deeply, suddenly remembering my home.

Urgent hands were tugging at the front of my clothes. "Kairi, wake up!" Someone hissed.

"Whaaaa?" I said drowsily, brushing at their hands and snuggling deeper into my pile of leaves.

There was a loud thump that shook the ground, and I floundered as I woke fully. The forest floor shook violently beneath us, and Yaya was tugging on my hand, her eyes wide with fear and her body tense.

"We need to get out of here!" She hissed frantically. "Something really big knows we're here!"

I stumbled to my feet and grabbed the basket, throwing it over my shoulder and turning to run, but it was too late—through the trees and past the underbrush with astonishing grace came the beast, and around us rose a circle of fire, licking at the trees. We were trapped.

The reptilian beast was large, each of its four muscled legs almost our height. Smooth scales like that of a fish glinted scarlet, dancing like embers in the light of our meager fire. Enormous, leathery gold wings cupped its front, gold that matched the razor-sharp claws and the long, curved horns and spikes that protruded from its back and head. Beneath, a bronze-plate underbelly was visible, curving up its strong neck. A long, snake-like tongue flickered in and out of its gaping jaw with enormous white daggers for teeth, sending shoots of bright heat from the forked tip.

"Dragon," I breathed, and it roared, the circle of fire shooting up into the night sky.

Blue-white flames rose around us, a wall that burned through the green and sent smoke tumbling into the air as the dragon bellowed, shooting tongues of fire at us that licked at our faces.

"And just what," a loud voice like craggy rocks clashing together spoke, "do you think you're doing intruding upon my domain?"

* * *

_Please review!_


	8. You Did NOT Just Call Me a Slut!

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Nadeshiko**

The walls of the cave were hollowed and round, serving to enclose everything in ominous darkness, letting nasty whispers echo in my ears and raise gooseflesh on every inch of my body. I kept my eyes wide open, breathing shallow and quick as dread seeped into my heart. There was no entrance, no exit to the cave but for a miniscule opening right above me, as if taunting me with the sight of light. I was so close to freedom, to safety, and yet so, so far—trapped, awaiting a horrible fate.

It was icy there—I could see my thin puffs of breath as frost crawled up the walls of the cave, the heavy scent of rot and ruin hanging like smoke in the air. My wrists were chained to the ground by black links that sizzled and burned lightly, and I kept as still as I could, forcing myself to ignore the acidic pain with all my strength. There was no one here to hear me scream, and it would do me no good.

_This is a dream,_ I told myself. _Wake up!_

But I didn't.

**_I can see your heart, and it is mine._**

The scent of decay clung to my flesh, twisting and writhing around my body. I gasped, trembling with terror coursing through my veins, struggling to be free. Sobs now cascaded freely from my throat, but my desperate attempts were useless.

**_Traitor,_** the monster hissed in my ear, now corporeal as it clenched my throat with rotting fingers, tongue flickering across my cheek. **_Shrew, liar, glutton, murderer, treacherous slut!_**

"I made a mistake." I breathed out, an utterly hysterical smile spread across my cracked lips. "A fucking stupid mistake, stupid, stupid—"

**_You're going to pay for being so unfaithful,_** it hissed. **_You think you know pain?_** Cruel, squealing laughter pierced my ear. **_You don't know it the slightest. And maybe when I'm finally done, I'll be merciful and take your heart for betraying me so you die quickly, mortal wench._**

"You don't own my heart." I gave a half-sob, half-laugh. "And my mistake wasn't betraying you, it was betraying the people who do. 'Cause you can't trust a demon, can you, maggot, shit-eater, liar, vile little—"

I cut off with a choke, swallowing back a scream as a bleeding hand dug into the flesh of my cheek, smearing acidic blood that sizzled and scarred it.

**_Little whore, you think I'm the only one that's going to torture you? _** A childish giggle breathed rot into my ear. **_You brought it on yourself, and I'm going to let you go afterwards, just so I can watch the horror and disgust on your precious friends' faces, see them hate you with every ounce they have in their bodies, until you curl up in despair, and then I'll come and take you away, and they'll thank me and sneer at you, and then you'll long for something so sweet as pain..._**

Darkness swallowed up my vision, and then I was gasping as light hit my eyes, the scent of clean air hitting me as I sat up, chest heaving as I took in my surroundings. I lifted a hand to my face, feeling the jagged scar that now ran from my cheekbone and curved down my cheek.

I was in a cave, but much, much lighter and less terrifying—light flooded in from a craggy, moss-draped entrance, revealing the sight of a lovely blue sky framed with rich tropical growth. I lay on an enormous island of sand, covered in old greens—a gigantic nest. All around, rich, dimly glowing blue water swam with fish whose rainbow scales glinted and sparkled in the bright light.

"So, you've finally woken." A deep, oddly mellifluous voice rumbled from behind me, and I started, scrambling back. Above me rose a beautiful creature, with gold horns and spikes that ran down its back and sharp talons, scarlet scales that glittered a thousand different colors even in the shadows.

My first thought was to name the beast a dragon, but the name was wrong, somehow—it was older, more ancient that a dragon. A deep reverence sunk into my body, and I nodded mutely, staring at the being in awe; even in my befuddled, terrified state, I couldn't sense any age, any way of calculating how ancient this being was.

"I wondered how long it would take you to wake from such a dark slumber." Fierce, kaleidoscopic eyes surveyed me, and I swallowed hard. "I am Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg, the chosen Enδrάκyrmr left to traverse the Fyamδύnius of Teoxinῖαrðr for ten thousand eons."

"Um. What?"

The Enδrάκyrmr rumbled, and I realized it was laughing. "Apologies, human. I had forgotten that your kind in this realm has grown deaf to the sound of Teoxinῖαrðr-alðompanir. The base language of this world," It added, seeing my confusion. "You have separated your base language into many other tongues, which have in turn split into new languages. You, human, understand English and Japanese, but as all humans, Alðompanir is not entirely lost to your comprehension."

"Uh. Okay."

Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg made the odd rumbling noise. _"You have seen a great tragedy for a human to comprehend, and have brought upon yourself many sorrows."_

I swallowed hard, looking down at the sand beneath me. _"How did you know?" _

_"I am one of the ancient beings, human, and as all immortals, I retain the knowledge of the Twelfth Omniverse."_

I opened my mouth to reply, then stopped, eyes widening. I'd switched to an alien language without even realizing I'd done so. "But..."

"You speak Alðompanir," Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg said simply. "But this is beside the point. You are an unusual human, even by the standards of your people, I see. It is not often one comes across both a Yin-spirit and character bearer who no longer owns her own soul. And you have many secrets."

I bit my lip, trying to hold back tears. "I..."

"Nadeshiko!" I started and turned to see Nagihiko, Yaya, Utau, Kairi and Amu all come barreling towards me and tackle me to the ground. Each were covered in fresh scars, odd wounds, but even with the aura of exhaustion, they still smiled for me.

"Thank goodness, you're awake!" Nagihiko tightened his grip on me, laughing in my ear. "You took so long to wake up, we were all terrified you never would!"

"There's so much to explain," Kairi said, smiling at me. "A lot, actually."

"I'm just glad you're here!"Yaya laughed happily, eyes sparkling.

At the sight and feel of them, guilt had surged up through my veins and spread to every last inch of my body. Amu hung back, her eyes guarded. She caught my gaze, and a thousand different emotions flickered through. My stomach dropped in realization—she knew.

"Calm down, you guys," Utau said easily. "Nagihiko, stop smothering your twin. She looks sick."

"Guys. Stop." Amu's quiet, somber voice broke through all the rest, and they stopped. "Maybe you guys can tell her about them later, but she has some telling to do herself."

"What do you mean?" Utau asked curiously, frowning slightly. "Amu, look, I know we're going through—well, a rough patch, but you've been acting strange ever since you got back and brought her with you. What exactly—"

Amu sighed, approaching Nadeshiko slowly. "Your wrists."

I held back tears, shame crawling up my throat as I lifted my wrists, and Amu lowered her hands, encircling them for a moment. There was a bright, almost painful glow, and then when she lifted her hands away, two bracelets encircled them, carved with runes. All of the strength and the clean flood of energy that rushed through my veins died, leaving me feeling raw, naked.

"What..." Yaya asked, confused.

"They're binding bracelets," Amu said softly. "They bind the power of any supernatural, so they're stripped. Human."

My eyes burned with tears. "Amu..."

The others stared at me, sudden doubt creeping into their expressions. "Nade, what's she talking about?" Yaya asked warily.

"What's going on?"

"Yeah, Nadeshiko, what are you supposed to tell us?"

"Just say it."

"What are you—"

_"I lied, okay?"_ I shouted, and it went quiet. "I lied. I... I'm not what you think I am."

"What do you mean?" Nagihiko asked, his brow furrowing.

"Did you know that she was schizophrenic?" Amu asked him softly. Nagihiko's eyes widened with shock.

"No! Of—of course not, that—what?!"

"Because she is," Amu interrupted, "And she doesn't and hasn't been taking any medication, back since before you met her, back before she created this labyrinth herself, knowing we'd end up in it, before she sold her soul to the monster that put us in this labyrinth, and back before she set fire to her old orphanage and killed almost everyone in it!"

"What?" They stared at me in disbelief, and I looked away. Immediately I felt their gazes turn to shock and anger at this sudden confirmaton, this hard glaring truth made all the more real by the fact that I couldn't even look them in the eye when she said it.

"No..." Nagihiko shook his head. "That's... that's impossible. I mean—it just can't be."

"It is," Amu said quietly. "So, why?"

"I thought I had to," I pleaded, "I thought that it would make everything right, but I was wrong, and I swear, I—"

"So you _did."_ Utau looked at me in fury. "You set all this up! You were the one who created this stupid labyrinth that's been trying to kill us! Did you unleash O Shinge on us as well?"

"I didn't do that!"

"And why should we believe you?" Kairi demanded. "You lied about everything else, didn't you?"

"Everything was a lie?" Yaya's expression was heartbroken.

"No! I—"

"You messed around with Tadase's heart and all of ours, knowing that in the end we'd all die!" Utau shouted. "And you didn't care, did you, since you'd already sold your soul to the guy that stuck us here, not like it was that big a deal, seeing as you were sick enough to play us right into his hands!"

Tears were streaming freely down my cheeks. "Please, I didn't—"

"Didn't what?" Yaya said angrily. "What didn't you do?"

"I didn't go into this knowing I'd hurt you!" I shouted. "Yes! I'm schizophrenic! No, it's not genetics, otherwise Nagihiko would probably have it, I'm schizophrenic because I lived with that demon for years and it drove me crazy, which is why when I couldn't replace my meds, I went psycho and set my home on fire!" My words were losing coherence—I was sobbing now. "So when that monster told me about all the souls it'd stolen, including all the ones of all the people I'd killed—" My throat seized. "—I gave it my soul in exchange for letting it go, and it made me build a labyrinth and—and make it a new body, so I did, and then I met you guys, and I couldn't get out, and it wasn't all a lie!"

"It doesn't matter!" Yaya yelled at me, eyes brimming with tears. "So what if it wasn't a lie? You still went into this knowing someone would get _hurt,_ and _you never told us,_ so clearly you couldn't have cared about us that much!"

"But—"

"Save it, traitor," Utau growled, seething. "Amu, you sure these things will keep her here?"

"Yeah." Amu closed her eyes. "But, guys, she's still our—"

But the others had stood, turning away from me. "Amu says last time she checked, the others were on their way here," Kairi said darkly. "Once they get here, we can figure out what we'll do with you."

"Nadeshiko..." Nagihiko looked at me, hurt and betrayal and anger still evident in his gaze.

"She's not your sister, Nagihiko." Utau said coldly. "I doubt she ever even loved you in the first place."

He looked at me for a long moment, then turned away and stood, brushing the tips of his fingers over the top of my head. He didn't look back.

Amu rose to her feet, ready to follow, then stopped. She leaned down, eyes brimming with tears, and whispered in my ear, "I forgive you, Nadeshiko."

Then she was gone.

I watched them leave, quivering, then broke down sobbing, curling up into a ball and drowning. Above me, Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg began to croon an ancient melody, filling the bitter emptiness of the cavern, the sweet, soft sound rising out of the cave of sorrows and into the world.

* * *

"Wake up."

I was ripped from sleep by the harsh, sudden pain of someone kicking me with the tip of their boot. I was immediately aware of new bonds—a gag over my mouth, my hands tied in front, and my feet bound together.

Sitting up hurriedly, I saw Ikuto glaring down at me in disgust, his arms crossed. Like the rest, he had scars, cuts and bruises, especially a fresh one that looked like it had been made by an enormous bird. Nagihiko stood behind him, his face expressionless.

In his hand he carried a small bowl of fruit, which he left fall to the dirt, some of it tumbling into the water. "Food," Ikuto said coolly, then turned and walked away. "Don't stay too long, Nagihiko. Don't forget, she lied to us all, she'll do it again."

Nagihiko waited for him to leave, then slipped forward, bending down to right the bowl. He dipped his hands in the water and retrieved the fruit, placing it to the side. Gently, he scooped one hand under my shoulder and righted me, removing the gag and brushing the hair back from my face.

"Open." He held a berry to my lips, and I accepted it mutely, keeping my eyes to the ground. "They're drugged, you know. The berries. They're called Nox fruit. They're supposed to dull the senses for a few hours. Someone has to give it to you every so often so you can't think clearly." His fingers quivered lightly. "It's dangerous. If the mixture isn't right, or if you have too much, it can damage the brain permanently." He took a shaky breath. "It's been hard these past few weeks." He continued to feed me, until the bowl was empty but for the stain of purple and red against the carved wood. "I mean, I guess... you already knew it would be hard." He lifted my chin, forcing me to look at him. His gaze was searching.

"You're my sister," He said softly. "My twin. And I know that I probably shouldn't, that it's foolish, but I still love you. I just... can't not trust you. I trusted you before, and I thought—I mean, you were on our side during the whole thing with O Shinge, you helped free me when I was possessed, you were just... there. And—" He scooted closer, expression sad. "Did... did I ever matter to you? Did you ever see me as your brother?"

"Yes," I whispered, silently begging him to believe me and knowing he had no reason to. "I did."

Slowly, I shifted, twisting my arms up to my head. With a firm tug, the ribbon came free, and my hair tumbled down my shoulders. The same length, the same violet hue, and the same hair ribbon I'd worn every day since I'd first met my twin. I tucked the scarlet ribbon into his hands, and he lifted it, eyes filled with sorrow.

"I can't pretend to understand why you did what you did," He said finally. "Maybe you thought it was the only thing to do at the time, I don't know. But I still have faith that you would do what's right."

"Nagihiko!" Ikuto's voice pierced the cave. "Hurry up, you shouldn't stay in there too long!"

My twin sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "It's hard, I should tell you. I'm trying to stick up for you—again I probably shouldn't but I am—but nobody seems to believe me." His gaze hardened. "It's like they've completely forgotten that you used to be their friend. Now that you're... well, you know, they can't even remember all the good times we had. Aren't even bothering to consider that maybe... you really did love us. And now they've resorted to poisoning you."

"They have no reason not to hate me," I croaked. "I'm the one that put them here. I'm... the one who stood by and let bad things happen to you guys."

"That thing that tried to kill us and sent us here is dangerous," Nagihiko said after a moment. "It was a stupid decision, yeah, but I can understand that it would be hard to stop that thing alone. But you could've told us." His tone grew fierce. "No more secrets. None, all right?"

I nodded silently, and he wrapped his arms around me, hugging me tightly. From behind my back, he retied the ribbon my my hair and replaced the gag, then pressed a kiss to my forehead. "I forgive you."

Then he left.

I knelt there, still tied, and stared down at the empty bowl in front of me, moving slightly with the light tide of the pool. He'd missed so many berries, I'd noticed—soft, round, and red, floating away from the island and into deeper waters. How odd, I thought vaguely as the line between reality and dreams blurred. One berry, one little berry, could have made the difference between whether I had the luxury of dreams.

Just before I drifted away, I realized I'd been denied even the smallest comfort of my dearest Azumi, and felt deep loss. Then I lost all distinction between day and night, the taste of Nox fruit still lingering on my tongue.

* * *

_"We are not killing my sister!"_

_Nagihiko slammed his hand down on the rock, eyes fierce. "Traitor or not, she's still my sister, and we are not going to kill her!"_

_"She tried to kill us!" Ikuto growled. "We might as well return the favor!"_

_"We can't do that," Tadase said quietly._

_"She doesn't love you, Tadase, she was playing you!" Rima rounded on him. "In case you haven't noticed, we're all in here trying to stay alive in the labyrinth that she made! Or have you forgotten what it felt like to get pecked half to death by those idiotic birds and then jump out of the nest and plummet twenty stories to the ground?"_

_Tadase flinched. "She didn't plan that."_

_"She knew we could've died," Kairi retorted._

_"She had endless chances to tell us the truth," Yaya said bitterly. "We could've helped her, and she chose to let us die. None of it was real."_

_"Are you forgetting that she helped us fight O Shinge?" Nagihiko demanded. "That she's another person of whatever goddamn destiny we got stuck with? She saved me when I was possessed, and she fought with us!"_

_"She probably was the one who set O Shinge on us!" Utau exploded. "And the one who knew you would get possessed! All of us were attacked by that thing, we all could have died!"_

_"An eye for an eye," Ikuto snarled. "She shows us the way out. Then she dies. Agree?" Most nodded._

_"Does it make you feel better?"_

_Amu, who had remained silent, stood, her eyes glowing dangerously. "Do you feel big and strong, killing a girl?" She said coldly. "To hurt someone? Are you really all so easily swayed? Regardless of whether or not she cared for us, we cared for her, I know you all did. Now that we know she's bad mistake, you're going to kill her?"_

_"Amu, she hurt us," Ikuto reminded her. "She would've killed us."_

_"Except she didn't," Amu insisted. "And I hate to point it out, but neither did you, when you fought with Easter to protect you family."_

_Ikuto paled. "That's different. I was protecting my family."_

_"How?" She said quietly. "You made a mistake. You could've told us, trusted us, but you didn't. And we all forgave you for it. Now Nadeshiko has done the same, to save the souls of all the people she killed. But it's different?"_

_"She could've told us the truth," Utau told her. "She didn't."_

_"Most of us have in one way or another made bad mistakes." Amu crossed her arms. "I know this is mean to point out all the mistakes we've made, but a lot of them are just as bad, you know? Utau, you worked for Easter as well. Kairi was a spy. Tadase held a grudge against Ikuto. Nagihiko kept his identity from us. I hid Ikuto in my house and broke Tadase's heart."_

_"There's still Rima, Yaya and I," Kukai protested._

_"Rima toyed with the emotions of her fan-boys, you also knew about Nagihiko's true identity and didn't do anything about it, and Yaya... well, you're really ready to persecute Nade so easily?"_

_"Amu..."_

_"We're not going to kill Nadeshiko," Amu said stubbornly. "And you know, she probably knows how to get out of here. She needs to stay alive. She can guide us out of here."_

_"What gives you the right to decide that?" Rima challenged._

_"What gives you the right to kill someone?" Silence. "You don't have any right to take someone's life away. We're not killing her, and that's final."_

_"Fine," Utau said finally. "But she still takes the Nox fruit."_

_"She takes the drug," Ikuto said firmly when Nagihiko tried to protest. "We won't kill her... but we sure as hell aren't going to show any mercy."_

* * *

I couldn't be sure how long I had dozed—they had come many times, sometimes forcing the Nox down my throat, sometimes letting it fade before they fed it to me, but always they came, relentlessly stealing away everything I had left in me—my senses, my feelings, my memories, my identity, all of it was torn from me, to return in miniscule pieces before it was ripped away again.

They had lit torches the next time I floated from my hazy reminisces. The sky was dark and scattered with a thousand miniscule points of light, swirling across the heavens in a mocking call of lost freedom and forgotten happiness. It must have been some time past midnight. I could hear the soft sound of singing in the distance—low, round and sad, an ancient melody long forgotten. Listening to the tune with a heavy heart, I didn't notice the soft crackle of sand under feet until the dark figure loomed over the entrance to the cave.

"You are awake, human." The Enδrάκzyrmr slid into the cave, moving smoothly across the water and to the nest, where it curled up around me. "The Nox has fled from your body. It will not be long before they return to feed you it again."

I nodded mutely, curling up into a tighter ball. I felt horribly small in the presence of one so large and wise—all of my mistakes, all the bad things I'd done, made me feel silly and weak and ashamed.

"They will come soon," The Enδrάκzyrmr repeated, curling tighter around me. Its eyes flickered "Mortals are so often irrational... ephemerals cannot see the plagues that lurk in the distance, such beings have limited foresight... A great destiny, a terrible fate..." Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg looked down at me. "But you knew when you created it, what price you would have to pay..."

I felt tears running down my face. "I didn't have any other choice, did I?"

"No," It said gently, curling tighter. "It is a difficult road you have chosen to take, and though the wise one"—I assumed she meant Amu, the only one aside from Nagihiko who showed me any mercy—"has seen much, she has not seen all. This is how it must be; you must keep this hidden, or your deeds will all come to naught."

"Will it be worth it?"

"Little human, it is not for you to decide anymore," It said quietly. "And you are the catalyst that will bring about war."

"I didn't want to," I whispered. "I had to do it. But... if only—if only it hadn't happened in my time—"

"Mortals are blessed and curse with lives that end." Enδrάκzyrmr-Ryūωνg let out a thick curl of smoke, flicking its tongue. "Your lives are chaotic and messy, the life of adventurous beings burdened with both terrible pain and bright glory. All who live regret the pain of it; all mortals wish an end. They wish to see beyond into happier times. But as mortals, all you have to decide for yourselves is what Destiny you choose to follow with the short time you are given to live."

"And did I choose—wrong?"

"That is for you to decide." It began to uncurl. "I cannot aid you. I have only been granted a place in your Destiny, and that place is to tell you that you have no choice but to follow it. It is too late to return." It lifted its head, casting its gaze towards the entrance of the cave. "I leave you now to decide."

And it uncurled fully, stretching out and disappearing further into the caves, leaving me suddenly vulnerable and cold.

The crackle of footsteps approached the cave, and I curled in on myself for a moment, wishing nothing more than to sink through the floor of the cave, never to be seen again.

Tadase appeared at the mouth, with shadowed eyes and healing wounds, and whose gaze was cast to the floor. The sight of him—the familiar gold hair, the red-violet eyes, everything—made my heart squeeze painfully in my chest, my throat close and my eyes burn with unshed tears.

He knelt by my side, and I watched him as he removed the gag, glancing nervously over his shoulder.

"Hey." Tadase shifted to his knees, his gaze guarded. "I've got food."

I looked down, biting down hard on my tongue. "I'm not hungry."

"You have to eat. You can't starve yourself."

"Yeah?" I snapped. "Maybe starvation isn't so bad, rather than being anesthetized and tied up like some animal waiting for slaughter. At least then it'd be of my own choice."

He sighed softly, plucking a berry with two fingers and holding it out to me. "If you don't eat, I won't be able to feed you anymore. Someone else might take my place."

My cheeks burned. "Maybe that would be better."

"Would you really want that?"

I opened my mouth.

Tadase closed his eyes. "You know, I never told you how we made it here. Rima, Ikuto and I. It's a story, but I suppose it's not pleasant."

He began to tell me the tale, feeding me the Nox as he wove the story. They'd been in the middle of some strange grass forest, with insects and monstrous bugs that stalked them through the green. After a showdown with scorpions—Rima slayed three by herself, I learned with a faint twinge of pride—they'd been seized by an enormous blue bird and had been carried off to a nest high in the trees. After fending the bird off long enough to escape from the nest and down the branches of the tree, they'd had no choice but to jump to the ground. By some sheer stroke of luck, they'd landed on some soft patch of grass and had been relatively unharmed, but for a dislocated shoulder and a twisted ankle. They'd continued on and made their way through an abandoned anthill and arrived here, where they'd seen the enormous beast and followed it to the caves.

" Luckily for us, the dragon's friendly," Tadase said softly, pressing the last berry to my lips.

"It's not a dragon."

"Then what is it?" Tadase asked with interest.

I shook my head, pulling back. "Just—it's not a dragon. Call it 'it'. It's more... I don't know, correct?"

"Why not 'he' or 'she'?" Tadase seemed mystified.

"Because—" I sighed in frustration. My mind was already beginning to slip away. "Nothing."

He was silent for a moment; then he pushed the last berry into my mouth, and I swallowed reluctantly, feeling bitterness pierce my heart.

"Was it your job?" He whispered. "To make me fall in love with you?"

"No," I said, my mouth filled with cotton. I didn't have the ability to lie, the Nox stole that from me too; perhaps he knew, and perhaps this was why he was the one to drug me tonight. "Wasn't."

"...Did you ever love me?" He murmured, running the pad of his thumb over the scar on my cheek. I shivered, and felt his hands slip around my waist and gather me against his chest.

"Nnghh." I tried to speak, but my tongue was lead. He tilted my chin up, and soft, warm lips pressed against my mouth, gentle and bittersweet. I think perhaps I may have been crying—I would never be sure, the weak ties that kept me to consciousness were splitting and breaking one by one.

"I'm sorry," I heard a voice whisper in my ear, but I couldn't remember who it was, or why they should be sorry; in the end, I thought that perhaps I'd just been dreaming.

* * *

_Please review!_


	9. Oh No, It's the Cosmic Berries!

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Ikuto**

As we had arrived in this place of danger and come here together, the mists had descended and all life but our own had withdrawn from the jungle. For days, we had not seen the dark creatures and the light—no bloodthirsty manticores or curious jaguars, no mischievous primates and squawking birds. For the first time, it was safe to traverse across the jungle even through the murky darkness, and never come across any danger.

And yet the fruit had begun to taste less sweet and more sour and hard, and the green began to twist into sharper shapes. It was almost as if the jungle itself was growing cold and cruel, chasing away even the native dwellers in some attempt to frighten us away.

As long as we remained here, however, we were safe, and the weeks passed in gathering supplies and food, preparing for the journey that would come, in order to find our way out of this prison. Three times a day, we would draw straws to see who was forced to feed the traitor the Nox, and three times, one of our curious party would attempt to coerce the dragon we stayed with to reveal enough about it. The great beast refused to answer any our questions—we knew not if it had a name, not what gender it fell under. We called it dragon, for that was the only name that made any sense to us.

The third day of the third week, we stood outside the cave, choosing dried straws to see who would feed the traitor this turn. The fog had grown dangerously thick, until one might start out for the cave and impale themselves on a gnarled branch three miles away. For this reason we remained close, and yet because of this, we had limited options on keeping ourselves occupied.

I sighed as I examined my tiny piece of straw, already knowing that it would be I who would be forced to feed the Nox to her. "I guess it's me."

"Better you than me." Utau said in relief. "Although honestly, it's not like there's much else to do here."

"Would you rather be fighting monsters?" Kairi asked dismissively.

"Maybe I would," Utau shot back. "Or is it easy for you to shove Nox down her throat?"

For the past weeks, the anger we had felt towards the traitor had died down some, leaving the reminder of exactly what she once—and perhaps still did—mean to us. The action still felt heartless and cruel; who would enjoy shoving dangerous berries down someone's throat, no matter what they had done? The tension in the air had nearly become visible, but there was nothing we could do. We'd chose not to have any pity on the traitor, a grave mistake, and it would be on their hands should the time come when we truly needed her.

"I might as well get it over with." I stood with a groan, striding over to the Nox plant, which had crimson leaves and needle thorns, plucking through the berries until I had reached exactly thirty-seven.

As always, the cave was dark, although the pure light of the fog sent pale reflections cascading across the calm surface of the pool. The dragon was absent from the cavern, leaving its soft sand nest almost empty. Curtains of moss hung around its entrance, stretching around the hollow like green veins. In the small shallows by the edge of the sand nest, some of our supplies lay neatly piled and stacked.

The traitor lay curled in a small ball in the center of the nest, utterly motionless but for the shallow rise and fall of her chest. Her eyes were open and half-lucid, and filled with shame, I noticed with mixture of savage satisfaction and odd pity. We hadn't bothered changing her clothes—there were none to spare—but unlike ours, they were intact, as she had not been allowed to leave the cave since she had first awoken.

"Lunch." I knelt and tugged her upwards, setting her against the rocks of the nest so she was semi-upright. Her eyes met mine and narrowed, then flicked down to the bowl, filled with the dark berries with bloodred juice leaking from their fragile skin. She made a muffled noise of protest.

"Save your breath," I told her quietly. "Don't bother lying to me."

She glared at me, saying things through her gag, but I couldn't understand her, and in all honesty, I didn't want to.

Wishing that there was some other way to feed her, I removed her gag, plugged her nose firmly, and forced a handful of berries into her mouth. She choked, trying to spit them away, but I kept her jaw shut, wincing at the cruel gesture. Her eyes were wide and pleading, begging me to stop, and my heart twinged in my chest, but it had to be done, no matter how much it hurt to do it. I kept my hand in place, gritting my teeth and looking away.

After almost thirty seconds of struggling and writhing, eyes dilated with fear, she swallowed, panting and wheezing. I stuffed another handful into her mouth, and she swallowed, tears streaking down her face.

"That wasn't so hard, now, was it?" I asked, retying the gag and getting to my feet. "Would've gone quicker if you hadn't struggled."

"Do you feel big and strong, making a little girl die?" She whispered harshly, eyes filled with hurt and betrayal.

"We're not trying to kill you." I replaced her gag. She continued to glare at me with a revulsion and hatred I'd never seen before. "I know we were so angry before, me especially. I'm sorry for any unnecessary cruelty. But that doesn't change the fact that you betrayed our trust and plotted to kill us. You're still a traitor, and were not going to give any more chances."

She curled up in a ball, cringing and squirming, and I sighed, turning away. I left her in the cave and slipped back into the mist, tossing the bowl to the side.

"It's done," I said wearily.

"That took longer than normal," Kairi commented. "She give you trouble?"

"She struggled more than she normally would." I shrugged. "Not really any big deal."

"Well, what do we do now?" Yaya griped. "Don't we have anything we can do?"

"To be honest? Not really—we've got no more preparation that needs to be done. We should actually probably be getting ready to leave."

"And we've still got to find a safe way out," Tadase added. "But it'd be easier if we stopped feeding the Nox to Nadeshiko. She could bring us to it."

"I guess," Utau said grumpily. "But how exactly do you propose we keep her from attacking us all the moment she can think straight?"

Tadase opened his mouth to speak, but a sudden throb of motion knocked us all off our feet. A devastatingly loud groan echoed through the jungle, the twisting green shaking and quivering as the ground rumbled beneath our feet and the sky darkened to black overhead.

"What's going on?!" Amu shouted, struggling to stand.

"Why on _earth_ would any of us know the answer to that?!" Rima yelled, grabbing Amu's outstretched hand.

"Something's wrong with the jungle!" Nagihiko shouted, lunging unsteadily over towards the supplies and snatching up as many into his arms as he could. The trees were shivering violently around us, threatening to topple over. "We need to get out of this part of the maze!"

"How?!" Yaya screamed, holding on to the ground desperately on her hands and knees. "This jungle is huge! It'll take us days to find the ways we came in, and we don't even know if the exits are even there anymore!"

"Into the cave! Maybe there are more caves connected to this one!" I shouted, and we stumbled and groped our way towards the cavern, the roar of the jungle screaming in our ears and lashing out at our legs.

Rocks tumbled free from above the cave, speeding towards the ground with a nasty crack, creating enormous waves and sending barrage after barrage of water into our faces. The cave groaned in pain as the ground thrashed beneath us, narrowly dodging the boulders that smashed down around us, slicing and bruising our skin.

"Nadeshiko!" Nagihiko screamed, sprinting towards the center of the cave. Enormous chunks of the ceiling smashed around the nest, tearing it to pieces and threatening to crush the traitor, who was deaf to the world.

There was a deafening roar, and from nowhere, rising high with glowing scales that reflected the greatest boulders and sending them flying away, was the dragon, knocking aside an enormous boulder and snatching the limp body of the traitor up in its claws.

It hissed something in some terrible language, eyes bright with bright fire that flickered a thousand violent colors. With a blast of searing light, the dragon dissolved and imploded into one dazzling form. It was impossible to discern some true form—it shimmered and swirled, like some being created when shapes and colors were indefinite.

The falling rocks froze in the air, revolving slowly as if little strings had attached themselves to the stones and held them in place. The traitor had disappeared into the light of the being, indiscernible from the beast. With an odd move, almost like a gesture, the form moved from the island and moved across the water, causing no ripples in the surface as it made its way to the back of the cave.

Then it descended into the water, parting the liquid in half, and we waded in after it, then paddled and struggled to follow as it led us down a thick rocky tunnel that curved and twisted sharply. The radiating light was impossible to look at for an extended period of time—my eyes would begin to burn and my vision would grow fuzzy, like looking at the sun, so I averted my gaze.

The every inch of the walls were hung with crystals that glinted hundreds of different hues and shapes. Some were boxy emerald clusters, while others were long and pale spears the hung dangerously from the ceiling. There were glassy spikes, rich puce fingers, and everywhere there were veins of glittering, fiery colors running through round boulders that shimmered on walls and illuminated the water in lovely shades. There were shining violet, rosy pink and smoky crystals jutting from the walls, oddly curving hexagonal gems in milky green, blue-grey, glass-green and mauve chunks along the edges of the water speckled with white. It was some time before I realized they glowed all to themselves, shining even in the radiant form's bright glow.

"So beautiful," Amu breathed, eyes alight with this wonder. Yaya slipped her hand into Kairi's, smiling happily at the lovely scene. It was a miracle of beauty.

"Where are we?" Tadase asked in awe.

_Krustallos, _the beast spoke in the infinite voice of a thousand beings, deep and high, smooth and rough, delicate and harsh. _We have reached the home of the Ριnymkhuórei._

The crystal light began to glow brighter, not quite bright as the ancient beast but strong enough to blind the eyes. Glittering forms had begun to separate in odd strands from the streaks in the gem-encrusted walls and pool into forms draped in the same hues as the jewels. They had all taken the shape of lovely women, with hair that took the appearance of different stones: girls with braids like feldspar, translucent curls of quartz, even short, boyish locks smooth and dark as obsidian. Silver, white and red veins traced thin, intricate patterns along their skin. Their eyes were like carved gems—one simple, shining color, like garnet or jadeite, and completely pupil-less.

_Oreads,_ the form spoke, and solidified slowly, its light dimming somewhat until it took a similar shape of the jewel women: draped in brilliant, fiery colors, with dark, smoky skin, glowing white eyes and obsidian hair that writhed in the air like tendrils of pure dark energy. It rose high above the rest, its head nearly brushing the ceiling.

One of the oreads stepped forward. She was smaller than the rest, with smoky-quartz hair that curled around her ears and rich coal skin. Her eyes were black moonstones while her veins were a deeper shade of scarlet, unlike the rest. "I am Pyr, leader of the Oreads. Why have you come to our home?"

"I am Ριnymkhuórei-Ryūωνg of the Twelfth Omniverse," our ex-dragon said in a bell-like voice, and the oreads murmured in awe.

"What did it just say?" Rima murmured.

"I have absolutely no idea," Nagihiko whispered back, clearly befuddled.

"I come with mortals in critical condition." It gestured to us, face expressionless. "You see their strands in the fabric of Destiny."

The leader of the oreads nodded. "This is a fated meeting. It is an odd occurrence—are not the immortals restrained from most contact with the mortal beings of the Fyamδύnius of Teoxinῖαrðr?"

"My involvement in this particular event is regrettably unalterable." The creature bowed its head. "For this reason and my higher capabilities, I was chosen as a Traveler for the eighty-two octillionth Traverse."

"And the

"Do you have any idea what they're actually saying?" Utau asked Kukai from the corner of her mouth. He shrugged helplessly.

"The Ριnymkhuórei have no quarrel with the Enδrάκzyrmr," The oread said in a clear voice. "Nor with Teoxinῖαrðr. We will assist you in your time of distress."

The beast nodded, and reached within itself, pulling out another form from within it, whose light dimmed to reveal the traitor, whose body was limp and utterly motionless. Her skin was now covered in thin lines of scarlet, and dark liquid trailed from the corner of her mouth.

The oreads took her with great care, bearing her away. The first great oread turned to us, eyes shimmering. Then she smiled warmly. "Please call me Pyr," She said calmly. "Let's get you somewhere more enjoyable."

* * *

The river that flowed through the tunnels rushed against the walls, echoing and burbling smoothly as the path descended and expanded. We stepped into an enormous cavern with smooth, rounded walls flaring an entire spectrum of colors, where the clear water pooled with such clarity that you could easily see every detail of the glittering white sand and aquatic life that waved and darted below the surface.

In the center of the cavern, beneath a round opening that let in sweet, bright sunlight, a low, sleek palace of black stone lay in the center, somehow graceful with its odd curved shapes and crystalline turrets. A high dark wall with streaks of white and grey ran in a perfect circle along the beach of the island, leaving only one visible break: a stone bridge that ended in a widened crescent before it reached halfway through the pool of water.

On the end we resided in, a small stone port was lined with transports, all of which looked severely out of place: a viking longboat with a head gilded in silver and with banners of deep scarlet, a white airplane with red stripes, an enormous, creaky pirate ship (complete with skull-and-crossbones, cannon holes and barnacles), a hexagonal spaceship shuttle, some strange burgundy air balloon with a flame insignia, and a wooden raft lashed together with rope.

"Our sanctuary," Pyr said at seeing the stunned look on our faces. "It's not quite as grand as it appears on the outside, but my people do not reside in these halls."

"Where do you live, then?" Amu asked curiously.

"We are earth nymphs." Pyr shrugged, leading us towards the viking longboat. "We make our living within the cavern itself. We do spend some time here, but only once in a while. We don't normally have visitors, and when we do, they are refugees or beings interested in the culture of all the nymphs who reside in our world."

"There are more nymphs?" Nagihiko asked as we descended into the boat and pushed off from the shore.

"Of course." Pyr paused. "Ah. Perhaps you were unaware; you are no longer on Earth—or Teoxinῖαrðr, for that matter. This world, Ριnymkhuórei, is a locked realm. That means that you may enter Ριnymkhuórei and leave, but it is doubtful that one who visits Ριnymkhuórei will ever return a second time."

"Oh."

"The ways of the universe are not necessarily common for any being to understand," Pyr said gently. "They are difficult, sometimes beyond comprehension, and often contradictory. But we are all part of the same everything-ness and nothing-ness, and at the same time we are completely separate. That is all you need to know."

"That makes no sense," Kukai commented.

"No," Pyr agreed. "It does not. But I digress. Yes, there are more nymphs. We are life spirits—we are in the earth, in plants and animals, in water and air and fire. We are the spirits of stars, clouds, the dawn, day and night, and sometimes are the guardians of mortal shrines."

"You have the same name as the nymphs in Greek mythology," Kairi noted.

Pyr nodded. "We are able to travel around the realms. It's a rare event—most nymphs do not wish to be far from their life sources. Sometimes, however, our nymphs travel away. Perhaps they are curious of the galaxies, or perhaps they feel in their deepest selves that they belong elsewhere. All who leave rarely leave for good—those that do, we keep their life sources here alive and well so they may prosper."

"Do you normally get humans refugees?" Rima asked.

"Not always. We've received elves cast from their homes, ghost plunderers looking to redeem themselves, other elementals searching for relief from a war, dwarves interested in our crystals, satyrs searching to restore natural glory... I believe we received Æsir at one point—a prince searching for his stray lover, as I understood it."

"Do they stay long?" I gazed at the black palace. "It seems like a nice place."

"No." The boat bumped the edge of the stone walkway. "Many who arrive are lost. We do our best to help them find their way, and when they do, they return to their place in the world."

"Are all nymphs female?" Yaya stumbled unsteadily from the boat and onto the stone path, looking slightly green.

"The nymphs of Ριnymkhuórei have no gender," Pyr told her, leading us towards the black palace on the textured granite of the path. "It is a choice as to what we choose to appear as in the eyes of our visitors. Normally we have a different appearance, but because the most guests we entertain here hold similar appearances to humans, many of us have chosen to appear in this particular form, whether it be human male, female, both or neither. We have found it to be the most... comforting form, and therefore the most convenient."

"So, looking the way you do is so you don't scare your visitors or make them think you're monsters?"

"That is one of the reasons," Pyr conceded. "It is harder to fear or harm what you sympathize with, and even harder when it is lovely. There are drawbacks to appearing as such—these bodies are regrettably fragile, the extreme emotions cause irrational behavior, and there are needs that you humans require and odd functions that we are not used to."

The opening in the wall was a massive archway, opening into a lovely courtyard, an enormous rocky garden of subterranean plants like some strange black grass, toadstools, moss, some small trees and bushes, and a large amount of fantastic plants that seemed to have appeared from some fictional book. Here and there, different nymphs sat together, laughing and chattering, while others rested with serene smiles. There were no more than twenty.

"Ριnymkhuórei nymphs keep no secrets," Pyr said. "All born here are connected to the energy that flows through this realm that binds our spirits together. What one nymph feels, others who wish to know what they feel will use the life-energy and understand the particular emotion perfectly."

"There's no privacy?" Utau frowned. "What if something's really personal?"

"Think of it as—a library," Pyr told her, bringing us through the gates and into the palace. It was daunting and empty; the nymphs seemed mostly limited to the outdoors, seemingly indifferent to the pleasures of the black palace, which was indeed lovely, if lonely. "You may choose to open any book you wish, but you are not necessarily reading every book at the same time." All was black and white marble, precious metals and cool stone, but for the few wooden artifacts and unearthly flames that burned in lovely silver, gold and bronze brackets.

"Your quarters shall be within this wing, close to the exit." Pyr came to a stop in front of a small wooden door, turning the iron knob. "I hope you don't mind—we chose this place for its proximity to the exit and to the chambers of our other refugees and victims, for convenience purposes."

"Other refugees?" Amu asked, eyes brightening.

"Yes. Here is one now."

A door at the other end of the hall swung open, and out stepped a very tall man, with pale skin, raven hair and vivid green eyes. He seemed to have seen many horrible things; his eyes had a shattered look to them, his angular face looked too thin, and he had bandages covering his arms. He held the support of a tall, muscular nymph with richly tanned skin, long topaz locks and sapphire eyes. As the man moved by, he kept his eyes down to the ground, although something flickered within them while passing us.

"Haven't we seen him before?" Tadase murmured to me.

"Yes, I think so." I frowned, looking after the man. "But where...?"

"Perhaps you have seen him in your travels," Pyr murmured. "He is not of your particular realm, but he has traveled through many very unpleasant ones. His destiny has not been a particularly happy one—he has done many unspeakable things and has had unspeakable things done unto him. It took much to heal him of his affliction."

"Affliction?" I asked, still watching him.

"Insanity," Pyr said simply. "But he will not be entirely healed until he has returned home to the arms of the ones who still love him dearly, even after his many awful deeds. But let us move on." She opened the door to our room, a simple, fairly empty space with nine thick mattresses laid out on the floor and spread with fluffy pillows and rich blankets. To the right, there were two doors, and on the wall opposite, a wide window overlooking the gardens and some portion of the outer cavern wall, framed by draping curtains.

"Your... friend... is in the infirmary at this very moment, being treated." She frowned slightly. "It appears she has an imbalance in her energies as well as a nasty poison from some type of berry. She will be fine after some rest and... perhaps a week of healing." She bowed and closed the door, leaving us to our own thoughts.

The silence was broken the moment Nagihiko hauled back and struck me in the face, eyes blazing with pure hatred and fury.

"Nagihiko!" Amu said in alarm.

"What the hell?" I yelled, clutching my stinging cheek and glowering at him.

"You almost killed my sister, you bastard!" He growled, struggling against the firm grip of the others attempting to restrain him. "Or did you just forget about the Nox berries?!"

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

He snarled. "Somehow, after weeks of feeding her, you just so managed to forget that she's only ever supposed to get exactly thirty-seven berries every serving, just enough to keep her sedated? She was overdosed, you son of a bitch, and you were the last one to feed her!"

"Are you insane?!"

"It takes exactly ten seconds for the poison of the Nox berries to enter the vital organs," Nagihiko hissed. "She could've died. Or were you planning on that?"

"I didn't try to kill her!" I shouted. "Just because she's your sister doesn't mean that she wasn't once my friend! You think it's easy for any of us to deal with this? You think any of us don't regret how angry we were? She may be a traitor, but that doesn't mean any of us hate her!"

"Then explain why she was dying from Nox berries!" Nagihiko demanded.

"Nagihiko." Rima placed her hand on Nagihiko's arm, her expression calm and devoid. He turned his gaze to her, eyes flaming, then sagged. "The gardens are particularly beautiful," She said softly. "Let's go look at them."

Nagihiko shot one last furious look towards me, then followed her out the door, slamming it behind him. I blew out an exhausted sigh, covering my face with one hand. "God."

There was a slight silence; we stood there looking at each other, all aware of the painful tension seeping into the room like suffocating gas. "...You didn't really try to kill her, did you?" Utau spoke finally, clear anxiety in her tone.

"Of course not." I pinched the bridge of my nose, breathing deeply. "At least, I didn't on purpose. I remember—I counted out thirty-seven berries exactly." I swallowed hard. "I didn't realize anything was wrong—but I guess..." I could see the tears in her eyes, the fear and the disbelief as I forced her to eat. "...I must have done something," I said finally, slumping back against the wall.

"Like what?" Amu asked gently. "We all saw you retrieve the berries. What could you have done to hurt her?"

I looked away. "I don't know, but it was my fault," I said quietly. "Whether or not I intended to, something happened, and it was my fault."

"It couldn't have been you," Yaya insisted. "How? What could have happened in a mater of minutes?"

I shook my head. The room had gone strangely cold, as if all of the heat of life had escaped into the darkness of the caves. "Well, if I didn't do it, then who did?"

* * *

_She dreamed of darkness._

_Surrounded with walls, with drapes and forests and oceans of the endless black, there were voices, hissing and whispering endless things in her ears, but she could not move, could not breathe—she was ubiquitous, and she was nothingness. Then she was aware of knowledge, strange knowledge that made sense and none at all, and for a moment, she knew the secrets of all._

_In the deepest roots of Yggdrasil, in the heart of the Egg and Rose, in the chaos from ancient worlds long destroyed, there is an ancestral plant with leaves of entire spectrums that blooms the loveliest and most hideous flowers in the Twelfth Omniverse. It bears fruit and nuts, which in turn bear the neutral forces: Love, Knowledge, Sentiment, Life and Death, which in turn split into more forces. The existence of good and evil is an illusion; There is always balance, and it is kept by these forces that have descended from this one plant._

_Through the darkness, a blindly bright and impossibly dark object appeared before her, and she stared at it in awe and indifference. She reached out to it, somehow knowing its purpose even before it slid into her fingers._

_There in the first union of Chaos and Order, they are their most powerful, most potent, but the fruit and nuts are scattered throughout the Omniverse. It is not entirely impossible to collect the fruit, which take all forms—from objects of massive power to the Nox berries of Teoxinῖαrðr, to cubes of massive power to weapons and beings themselves. If such a fruit and nut would come into contact with a mere mortal, it is untold what may happen._

_The fruit-nut reached her grasp, and as her hands met it, she was enveloped in everything-ness, and nothing-ness, and then she opened her eyes to find herself alone within a room of crystals, draped in soft green sheets with a tiny black stone in her hand. She stared at it, trying to fully comprehend, but no mortal in the Twelfth Omniverse holds the power of the All-Knowledge, and it dissolved from her mind, leaving her with only the faintest idea of what it was and a much clearer picture of what it would do._

_The stone glowed slightly as she tucked it into her blouse, face pale and jaw set. The time would come, she told herself, and she would have to be ready when it did._

* * *

_Plaese review!_

_Yes, I misspelled that on purpose. Just checking to see if you were paying attention. Anyways, the review box is right there... It's just like a minute or two of your time..._


	10. Tadase Creeps Out Hissing Daisies!

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Amu**

Though the black palace was lovely and the oreads were helpful and kind, the days began to wear upon my nerves, and I passed through the halls in a fluttery daze. The rich foods imported from the upper world were ashes in my mouth and the soft silk garments began to grate upon my skin.

Unable to continue my quest for a short period of time, I continued to plan and monitor the interactions of my friends. Nadeshiko remained in the infirmary, refusing to speak to anyone but the nymphs who tended her, who informed me she was very slowly healing. Nagihiko remained tense and on edge, having apologized to Ikuto, although it was clear it would be a long time before he was willing to relax around his former close friend. Kukai wandered throughout the palace kitchens, working to bring meals to the table, and learned the new chemistry of the oreads. Rima visited the infirmary constantly, if only to tell Nadeshiko the daily happenings, but I caught her glancing around at times in confusion before her expression closed off, and I would feel guilty that I had not retrieved her guardian character for her.

Yaya spent most of her days at work, joining the nymphs on any task to be done, but there were shadows under her eyes and she seemed sadder. Utau spoke often to the refugees with battle experience, learning the ways of the whip and of knives, of swords and the bow-and-arrow. Kairi spent endless days in the library, an enormous, brightly lit place in the high towers and enormous scrolls and tomes spiraling up the circular towers. Ikuto spent time wandering the halls, speaking quietly to others every once in a while, and I could see lines of deep guilt appearing in his face and shame in his eyes. Tadase wasted hours in the garden, staring up at the sky beside the mossy rocks and streams, eyes following the twirling patterns of the lantern-flowers and holding staring contests with the increasingly uncomfortable hissing blue calathids.

I myself could find nothing that achieved a sense of production, and I wandered through the palace aimlessly on most days, speaking to few and trying to keep a hopeful aura, but it was difficult. This was nothing any of us had experienced, and it was not something I knew how to deal with.

My travels sent me to the deepest corners of the black palace, where few roamed due to the lonely air and distance from the rest. It did, however, cause a meeting I would not forget for quite some time.

Almost three weeks after we had first arrived, I was exploring the fifth floor, where the inner part was built with columns opening up to the inner courtyard, a space not often used. It was windy and bright, right below the hole in the cavern ceiling, but it was secluded and serene.

Lost in thought, I paid no attention the the slow footsteps ahead of me, and before I knew it, I had a face full of fabric with a dizzying scent pervading my nostrils.

"Oof!" I backed up hurriedly, flushing in embarrassment. "I—I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there..."

It was the ex-dragon, looking down at me with pupil-less eyes. Although it had shrunken down to the size of the nymphs and the tendrils of its hair were no longer glowing, they still had the appearance of smoke. The fiery veins that patterned its skin formed small, luminescent scales.

"Human." It acknowledged me with a nod, eyes narrowing slightly, and I realized it was scrutinizing me.

"Thank you for bringing us to safety." I bowed awkwardly, feeling suddenly very self-conscious.

"Granted to me only by what I was ordained," it said simply, "I had no choice in the matter."

"Oh." I shook off these obscure and somewhat blunt words and instead tentatively asking something that had tugged at my curiosity. "Pardon me for asking, but.. er... you're not a _dragon,_ exactly, are you?"

It cocked its head, gazing at me. "No. I am not a dragon. I am, in fact, several eons older than dragons. That is simply the form I had taken upon meeting you."

"The name you said when we first arrived—that's not your true name either, is it?"

"No, but it one mortal beings are granted to hear. I hold many names, but my true name is not told to mortals who are not already destined to perish in their adolescence—as humans would inaccurately say, 'before their time'."

"Oh." I was quiet for a moment. Then, "Well, I'm glad that I'll never know your real name, then."

"Indeed."

"Destiny isn't fair," I said softly, a bit bitterly. "People live unhappy lives. They die all the time. Sometimes it's like there's never any reason to it."

The not-dragon looked out into the courtyard, watching as dried leaves scattered across the black stones in the arms of a quiet breeze I could not feel. It held an empty sadness—for a moment, I could almost imagine it had waited countless years, endless spaces of time, watching the tragedies of the universes unfold, watching as people dreamed and loved and left and never came back.

"I have no words of comfort to give you," it said finally, "for I am not borne with the power of understanding how or why Destiny is formed—but I will tell you this—I do not always believe there is a Destiny at all."

"No Destiny?" I was surprised.

"I wonder that things happen as they occur. If perhaps we write our own tales, our own lives. Perhaps there is a Destiny, but I believe that if there is, we still make our own choices. For instance: if you were to choose not to complete your quest, that would still be your destiny. But if you chose to continue with this, then that would be your destiny as well."

"We write our own stories," I said thoughtfully. I exhaled, rubbing my arms, covered in gooseflesh. "I hope I write it well."

"A good story does not always have a pleasant ending," She told me quietly.

"No," I agreed, "it doesn't."

* * *

_"I always thought that living underground would mean a lot of rocks and and darkness," Rima said thoughtfully, crossing her arms and keeping her gaze towards the ceiling. "I never thought it would think of a cave as beautiful."_

_The gardens all remained in the sweet beam of sunlight that poured from the crack in the far ceiling of the cavern, spreading to the edges of the cave so that the gemstones sparkled dully. There were flowers with long stalks, wide red leaves and enormous flowers with large, translucent petals that gave off a musky scent. Glowing orange lanterns that grew from the trees spun madly, illuminating the yellow leaves with their ochre hue. Deep blue clusters of calathids with hundreds of petals turned their faces to follow them as they walked, humming ominously. Odd bell-like flowers tinkled as some miniscule breeze brushed across them, and Rima stooped to smell one, running her fingertips gently across the pink petals._

_"This is pretty." Nagihiko said nothing, choosing to glare sullenly at the creepy blue flowers that hissed at him, and she raised an eyebrow. "Are you listening to me?" No reply. "Nagi, it's been a week. Haven't you calmed down enough to forgive Ikuto already?" Still nothing. "I'm not really Rima, I'm a magical unicorn princess that fell in love with you and murdered her so I could have you." Silence. "My real name is Sweetie-kins the Love-boat Pony." He glowered at the flowers, which began to snarl at him. "I'm pregnant and you're the father."_

_Nagihiko started, his eyes widening with shock. "What?!"_

_Rima rolled her eyes, continuing on. "I'm not really pregnant, stupid. See, this is why you should listen to me."_

_"I'm sorry," he said after a moment. "I should have been listening."_

_"Yeah, you should have." She sighed. "He didn't mean to kill her, you know."_

_His eyes darkened. "That doesn't excuse anything."_

_"Maybe not. I have no proof. But..." She fixed him with a glare. "Do you honestly want to tell me that you think he's that kind of person? I'm not saying that what's been going on these past few weeks hasn't been pretty bad. But it feels like you're all forgetting that we're in this together. You want to fight, get into arguments, stop trusting one another, that's fine. But it's on your hands, and if we don't get out of this labyrinth together, then we don't get out of it at all."_

_"I guess." Nagihiko looked at his toes._

_"Did you forget?" She asked softly. "We've all been closer than close for over four years. All nine of us. The second Nadeshiko arrived, it was immediately all ten of us. That's how all of us think now. We grew up together, we fought together, we played together. Hell, we're a bunch of teenagers that share the same Destiny or whatnot. Somehow, we all managed to fall in love within our crazy group of ten people, a perfect number of ten people and five perfect couples. Granted, we didn't have a choice and for some reason Destiny likes even numbers and symmetry, but whatever. We're in this together. We always have been. We can't throw that away, no matter what."_

_"Everyone else seemed to be perfectly ready to throw that away."_

_"Don't be petty," Rima said calmly. "You've made mistakes, I've made mistakes, Nadeshiko made mistakes, Ikuto made mistakes. All of us. Granted, these may be a whole different type of mistakes, but they're still mistakes, and we all make them. Nobody is perfect, and it''s utterly ridiculous to expect perfection from everybody else when you're not perfect yourself."_

_"Huh." Nagihiko looked at Rima, who raised an eyebrow. "Did you take a leaf out of Amu's book of sentimental and heart-warming speeches?" She punched him. "Ow! That was a compliment! A compliment!"_

_She shrugged, smiling, and stood on her tip-toes, kissing his cheek. "You deserved it anyways, cross dresser," she said softly, and he laughed._

* * *

_"__Is it odd, to be in the body of a human?" Ikuto questioned Pyr._

_The two walked through the garden together, as the sunlight dripped into the lovely hues of the greenery and sent spirals of light to the edges of the cavern. The soft burbles of water were gentle and sweet, the clear water sliding over the slippery stones like glass baubles and trinkets._

_"Not always," Pyr said comfortably. "We're not particularly used to all of the bodily functions, which can at times be troublesome, but for the most part, taking for form of a human is not an entirely inferior experience."_

_He tilted his head to the side, regarding her. "But it can be a bad experience."_

_"Yes. Particularly with things nymphs were not born to experience. Mortality, clouded judgement, strong emotions, susceptibility to illness, vulnerability to danger..."_

_"You make it sound like being human is bad." Ikuto frowned, slightly rueful._

_She slowed her steps. "It can be."_

_"How?"_

_"Nymphs were not beings born with the ability to love," Pyr said finally. "It is a blessing and a curse given to other beings. In our true form, we have no love in our hearts."_

_"But you do in this one?"_

_"Yes," She said quietly. "Nymphs may love in the form of humans. But—" She looked away. "It is often... painful for a nymph. Our stories of love do not often end in anything but tragedy, and nymphs, who were not born to handle the pain as you are, will not last."_

_"But nymphs can't die," Ikuto said, perplexed. "You said they were immortal."_

_Pyr cast her gaze to the farthest edges of the cave. "Not in the form of mortals. I discovered that the hard way." Her eyes grew hard. "Long before you were born, there was a nymph, a curious oread of the grottos with an unusual penchant for adventure and travel. She would travel the forests, the mountains and the rivers, throughout the caverns of her home. She met gods and satyrs and spirits alike, leaving smiles and joy wherever she went, especially with her dearest sisters. She enjoyed her human form immensely, loving the pleasures and the happiness, reveling in the taste of her emotions. She wanted more."_

_"Was this nymph... you?" he said softly._

_Pyr continued as if she had not heard him, her eyes glassy. "One day, in the midst of the forest, a man fell from the sky. He was hard and strong, and his heart was filled with ice and his tongue was sharp and cunning. The moment he met the nymph, that ice seemed to melt away and his words softened. She would gaze out of the windows for hours daydreaming, watching our sisters in the skies. For days on end, she would remain locked away from the rest. For so long, the man stayed by her side, and the two seemed so happy. But nymphs are still immortal and humankind is mortal, and their time together passed in the blink of an eye. The years passed, and she was forced to watch as he grew old and weak, and though they loved each other still, she could do nothing but feel insurmountable guilt as he grew sick and died._

_"A hundred years would feel a hundred days to a nymph, but one cannot forget the feeling of love, and the nymph, who had only known the happiness of her feelings, was now drowning in the deepest wells of sorrow. Nymphs are not built to withstand the harsh reality of emotion. Unable to bear the pain of the separation any longer, she destroyed her own life source in anguish._

_"Her name was Eudaimon." Pyr finally met his eyes. She was crying. "No, human, the nymph was not I, but my dearest sister, and there is nothing—" her voice broke, "—I can do to bring my Eudaimon back to me."_

_As she begun to sob, Ikuto could not help but notice that nymphs were not beings meant to cry, and realized how tragic the beautiful song of emotion was and how blessedly cursed humans were to be able to bear its weight._

* * *

**_You will redeem yourself._**

_Nadeshiko's eyes flashed open, and she sat up in her cot, breathing heavily and clutching at her chest. The room was empty, but it was icy and it smelled of frankincense and rotted things. She drew the blankets closer to her chest, shivering in the bone-chill that seeped into the room and swirled around her swaddling of blankets and cushions. _

_She gagged as the scent of decay permeated her nose and choked her lungs, shuddering violently at the breath brushing her ear. The demon pressed itself closer, drumming its mismatched fingers that she herself had ripped away from her own victims against her throat, nails yellow and jagged-sharp._

**_You don't have the courage to betray me again,_**_ it hissed in her ear, **and you don't have the love in your heart to risk own neck to save them.**_

_Her eyes burned along with her throat. "What do you know?"_

**_You forget I can give you anything you desire. Anything. You could receive that boy's love once more—he'd think you deserved it again. You know I gave you the wind. I could give you the earth, the rain, fire. You could be powerful. _**

_She closed her eyes, squeezing them tightly shut. "It wouldn't be real love and I'd only be as powerful as you wanted me to be. Which would be nothing at all."_

**_Ah, but you know you're not meant to be loved. _**_The demon laughed cruelly. **Regrettable but true, yes? After all... one cannot be dead to enjoy the fruit of the living. I gave you your life.**_

_"And you were the one who took it away in the first place." Her voice quivered. "How did you fail, again? You tried to kill both my twin and I at birth, but you failed. He lived."_

**_Bah._**_ It sneered, its claws digging into her skin. **The Lock and Key failed, not I. They raised your dearest sibling from the dead, but they did not raise you as well. A grave mistake. I was the one who gave you a chance at life.**_

_"You gave me life so I could be your puppet." She clutched at her chest, fighting back tears. "You think you gave me a life? You drove me insane! I killed over a dozen people and burned down an orphanage because of you!"_

_**Fool.** The demon smiled, ill-assorted yellow teeth wide and nasty.** I drove you insane, yes, but I did not force you to stop remedying yourself with mortal medicine, nor was I the one who made you kill. You, dark one, did sinful acts ****of your own accord.**_

_Nadeshiko choked back a sob. "Stop it."_

**_Very few humans of your world are so vicious as to murder innocent people,_**_ Its smile widened. **And yet you do not seem as tormented as you should be. Perhaps you enjoyed it?**_

_"Enough!" She curled into a ball, rocking back and forth slightly. "I don't want to listen to this!"_

**_You would only be listening to the truth,_**_ it said in a sing-song voice, cackling. **You can try to deny it, but it will never cease to be true. Your hands are drenched in blood, and you cannot wash it away alone.**_

_"Shut up!"_

**_You can never forget you are borne of darkness, _**_the demon reminded her.** It runs in your veins. You do not share the pure energy that runs in your brother's veins—you are a being of evil, just as I am.**_

_"I'm not evil." Her eyes filled with doubt and pain. "I'm not... I can be good."_

_It ignored this, curling closer, and she scrunched in on herself, hissing. **You know I could take it all away. I could bring them all back to life, restore what you have destroyed. And I could give you power. You could bring good to these realms, redeem yourself. Earn the right to forgiveness. To happiness. You will have all the power in the Omniverse. **The demon's voice had grown softer, almost nostalgic, gentle, understanding. **All it would take is to join me.**_

_She stilled her shaky breaths, bracing herself. It would be worth it in the end, she told herself. It would all be worth it. And she would finally be free. So simple.. All she had to do was... accept it._

_She could do this._

_"I'm listening."_

* * *

_"This library is enormous," Kairi commented, staring up the circular tower rising above him, shooting story after story upwards, every inch of the walls covered with thousands upon thousands of books, of scrolls, of odd, mismatched, jumbled things meant to convey knowledge, an entire spectrum of wisdom and knowledge, seemingly endless. It was empty—the nymphs had no use for the library, kept it simply to help record everything within the Twelfth Omniverse. Kairi wondered if it was similar in the other Omniverses, or if perhaps there were no other Omniverses, gazing at the beauty before him._

_A nymph shelved a sizable tome from a high shelf, bound with smooth, woody leather and supporting black metal, the corners tipped with the same and a circle of iron in the center holding the image of a tree with nine roots, one of which was tipped with a bright red jewel._

_"What was that one?" he asked curiously._

_The nymph kept shelving. "It's part of a set depicting all of Yggdrasil." He picked up another, this one this a tome of bright white, scaly leather with scarlet clamps to bind and an image of the sun embossed on its spine. "That particular one told of __Ásgarðr."_

_"It's small for an entire realm," he noticed._

_"The contents change to what the beholder so desires, as long as the main subject—Ásgarðr, in this case—is involved. That is how many of the books in this library are used—less often by ourselves, of course, since we have little need for them, but as __Ριnymkh__uórei is a peaceful locked realm, it is a very convenient place to hold a library for those who wish to view it."_

_"Isn't __Ásgarðr that one place from Norse mythology?" Kairi inquired, handing another tome to the librarian._

_"It is not a fictional setting, no." The librarian hmm-ed. "OF course, at the same time it is, and/or it is neither of those. There are cases of the beings of realms visiting another, for various reasons. In your realm's case, one would assume that as the beings left your realm, your stories involving them would become myth and legend."_

_Kairi wrinkled his nose. "So... the whole tying the frost giant Loki down with his own son's entrails is true?"_

_The nymph raised an eyebrow. "Although perhaps not all the myths are a true history. As of the moment, I do believe the particular Prince Loki you speak of—__divides his time between pranking Miðgarðian superheroes, preforming the duties of J__ǫ__tunheimr Ambassador and Councilman to King Balder, and—ah—involving himself with as well as disturbing the many duties of Prince Thor.__"_

_"...Oh. But I thought—"_

_"There are multiple human worlds. Ideas are often unconsciously shared between them—think of them as alternate realities whose thoughts travel between them. The same goes for the Nine Realms as well, although I do believe the particular... version of reality that visited your realm was the same as stated prior."_

_"And are there other worlds with nymphs."_

_"Yes, just as there are multiple worlds of dragons, shape-shifters, spirits and supernaturals. And at the same time, everything I have now just told you is both wrong and right and somewhere in between."_

_Kairi blinked, then sighed in frustration. "That doesn't make sense."_

_"It should, it shouldn't, and/or it may make some."_

_He groaned. "Is there any logic in the universe—or I suppose Omniverse?"_

_"Yes, no, and/or—"_

_"Never mind. Can I see the book on Ásgarðr?"_

_The nymph retrieved the book for him. "It may be a bit explicit," he warned. "Everything—indeed, _everything—_is recorded."_

_"Hopefully it won't be as difficult to understand," Kairi said ruefully, and the nymph smiled._

* * *

_On the other side of the palace, Ikuto stood helplessly trying to console a nymph with a broken heart, who sobbed into his shoulder for her lost sister. Nagihiko stood close to Rima, his arms wrapped around her as they danced slowly to the sound of the world around them, to music only they could hear. Yaya sat back watching the lanterns of the trees as the nymphs beside her spoke of their daily duties caring for the refugees, heart beating slowly in her chest. Utau, dripping with sweat that stung her eyes and with burning limbs, spun and lashed out, tugging, and a tired smile graced her lips as she downed her opponent with her whip._

_Kairi sat in the highest towers, eyes flying across the page and his mouth speaking silent words as new worlds opened up to him. In the healing wing, Nadeshiko rolled her a stone in her fingers, morphing it into a locket, a ribbon, a knife, a dark berry, and then a stone once more, alone as she contemplated. Bright blue flashed and bubbled in a cauldron in front of Kukai, who turned with glowing eyes to his mentor that smiled and patted his shoulder. Tadase reached out towards a hissing blue daisy, which quailed and then purred under his gentle touch, and he smiled softly._

_Far, far away from an obsidian courtyard of a palace of nymphs, a man with one golden eye and one silver eye began to plot._

* * *

_Please review!_


	11. You Are Such a Showoff!

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Nagihiko**

A month had passed. It was time to leave.

We stood at the entrance to the cave with a small band of other fugitives, staring back at the black palace that had been our refuge for a month. We had been dressed in the same clothes as we had for the first two months or so upon first entering the labyrinth, now clean and pressed, along with a small number of supplies, strung in light packs and in pouches for us to carry.

It seemed no different than when we had first come, and yet endlessly so, now accompanied by drifting memories like colorful fish in some empty ocean. How disconcerting it was to think that this place we had all grown to love so much would likely never be seen again—after all, it was a locked world, and there was such little chance we would return to Ριnymkhuórei.

But the labyrinth awaited, and the crystal caves glowed, awaiting our return into the rest of the labyrinth. Indeed, we had always been inside the prison, and yet it had felt, if only for a blissful period, that we were safe and beyond its reach.

Standing next to us, if more emotional, were other refugees who would return to where they were needed. One was extremely short, like a dwarf. I wasn't sure whether it was polite to ask—as far as I was aware, this particular being was half the size of humans, beardless, and had curly brown hair and ice-blue eyes. Another was very tall, with pale skin, and somewhat a somewhat tragic, sorrowful air, although his sharp green eyes glinted with mischief. This one seemed human, except for the sort of timeless face and body—he could have been thirty or thirty thousands years old. Two more would seem human, if they had not been covered in white scars that curved and straightened like tattoos.

"This is as far as I may take you," Pyr said quietly. "You must continue your own journeys yourselves."

"I liked the fish~nya," Yoru said matter-of-factly.

"Thank you," Ikuto told her, and they smiled at each other, his a bit hesitant and hers harder to read. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Amu's eyes narrow slightly.

"Thank you for teaching me." Utau bowed to her mentor, a nymph who had taught her some skil with a whip. "I'll feel much safer."

"You were quite the student," he said dryly. "Very determined. You will be great with your own weapon."

"If she can learn how to hold back," Il mumbled.

Utau ignored her guardian character. "Thank you. I..." She trailed off, eyes widening as he pulled a thin, coiled whip from behind his back, simple, worn leather with a frayed tip. "Is that...?"

"This is the whip you practiced with," he said simply, "and as it has been worn to your touch, it would suit you the best."

She stared at it, then smiled and took it, bowing again. "Thank you."

"You'll need it."

"Thank you for knowledge of the tomes." Kairi bowed to the librarian, who chuckled lightly.

"Such an inquisitive mind." He paused. "For the most part."

"You are very impatient," Musashi said stiffly, "be more like a samurai."

Kairi smiled. "The book on Miðgarðr was particularly interesting. It was interesting to discover that some of the supernaturals there are actually pretty much considered superheroes in one of the alternate realities of Miðgarðr."

"Indeed. Of course, as I said before, there are many versions of Miðgarðr, and they may, may not, and/or will partly conflict with each other." His eyes flickered across the group of refugees, and I thought I hear a soft exhale from one of the others, but then he smiled and the group was silent, and I supposed I must have been imagining it.

"You should be off." Pyr spoke softly, stepping smoothly to the side and gesturing into the many forks in the tunnel. "Whatever direction you take, it should lead you where you are supposed to go."

The first one to disappear were the two scarred beings, then the short one, and then the tall one, all disappearing down a different path; one to the immediate left, then two from the one straight ahead, and one three tunnels from the right.

Amu turned to us, smiling lightly. "This is where we split up." She shouldered her pack. "I need to continue my own quest." Ikuto looked away, clearly resentful, and her gaze flickered to him, and then away. "Then, good—"

"Don't say it." Utau shook her head. "It's not 'goodbye', it's 'see you soon'. Right?"

Amu laughed, and Utau grinned. "See you soon, then!"

She turned away, contemplating the tunnels for a moment before she chose the most forward path, straight ahead. The crystals seemed to glow around her as she descended, brighter and brighter until she had disappeared from sight completely.

"Back into the fire," I muttered under my breath, and Rima squeezed my hand.

"We must leave you now." The other nymphs stepped back into the tunnel we had first come from, melding into the walls, little points of light zooming through the fiery veins of opal. Just before she disappeared, Pyr hesitated, then stepped forward, kissing Ikuto's cheek, and then she was gone, following the other nymphs. Ikuto looked stunned.

Utau raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "What was that?"

He blinked. "I... er."

She rolled her eyes, grumbling under her breath, calling her brother some fairly inappropriate names and making several rather violent death threats. "Whatever. Which tunnel are we taking?"

The center of the cavern was dimly lit, and as we stepped fully into it, the gemstones dimmed even further. The air felt suddenly both icy and burning, and an odd, somewhat familiar and unplaceable scent breached my nose. The cave walls glistened, and as we stood, black water slid down the walls like blood, mixing with the waters we were thigh-deep in.

"We need to get out of here!" Ikuto shouted. "That tunnel!"

We shot towards one tunnel, but the place groaned, shaking and knocking us backwards. I fell into the water, spitting putrid water from my mouth. I could hear screaming nearby, and scrambled towards the sound blindly, eyes burning with the blood-water, clawing my way forward.

The entire cavern trembled, and rocks began to cascade down the walls. I only just grabbed a familiar body, struggling to my feet and dragging them away. Staggering footsteps followed behind, before an enormous torrent of rocks smashed and piled high, blocking all passageways but the one we were in.

I cursed, breathing heavily, trying to get fully aware of my surroundings with thick, heady adrenaline coursing through my veins. I could vaguely feel something trickling down my cheek and dragged one hand down it, pulling it away to reveal dark blood. Beside me, panting heavily with dilated eyes, was Ikuto, and splayed across my lap was Nadeshiko, eyes dilated and breath coming in shallow pants. There was a thick gash across her forehead and her leg was twisted grotesquely, bones poking out of ragged flesh. The others were nowhere in sight.

"Fuck," she breathed, struggling to sit up, but I shook my head, dragging her body—it's a lot harder than it looks to drag someone around—and propped her up against a stone, brushing the hair back from her face.

"Ikuto, are you all right?" I demanded, rushing to his side.

"Yeah," he panted, clutching at a nasty gash on his forehead. "I'm fine."

"Here." I extended a hand to help him up, and he accepted it, arm around my shoulder as I took him over to the side of the cave, where he collapsed back. I turned back to Nadeshiko.

"Your leg." My hands fluttered, and I placed a hand on her shoulder. "We need to move you. Can you give me your arms?"

She nodded, gritting her teeth, and I grabbed her hands, steeling myself. I yanked her away, and she gave a yell of pain, clutching my hands so tightly I held in my own shout of pain. We only made it halfway to the wall before she wrenched herself from my grip, shuddering as tears streamed down her face.

"Put her leg in the water."

I turned to Ikuto, who was wiping at his forehead as he came to kneel beside me. He murmured, "Healing powers—that's how the nymphs heal." Ikuto lowered his hands, hovering hesitantly over her leg. She looked at him, jaw quivering, and nodded.

"This is going to hurt," He warned her, and she tensed.

"Do it," She gasped, grabbing my hand, and he placed his hands gently on her leg, gripping firmly. I scooted closer, slipping an arm around her waist and squeezing her gently. Ikuto squeezed his eyes shut, before yanking it straight once more.

She screamed in agony, writhing, and then it was done, and her leg was straight, laying in the water, all ragged flesh and punctured skin. He sat her up as her leg began to glow, blood flowing from the wound, murmuring words of comfort as she sobbed into his shoulder. Little chunks of bone, misplaced and broken away from the original, floated away with the scarlet liquid like pebbles in the water, and when her leg ceased to glow, it was as straight and strong as ever, although now thick, ugly scars ran jagged down the flesh.

"Is everyone else all right?"I shouted desperately, praying that they could hear me.

There were scrabbles, and I could dimly hear voices. "Nagihiko!"

"Yaya! Are you all right?"

"I'm okay!" There was more scrabbling; she was somewhere on the other side of the collapsed tunnel and off to the right, blocked from our side. "I don't know about the others, I can't hear anyone else!"

I closed my eyes. There were eight tunnels to choose from. This was the labyrinth. Like some living breathing thing with a sick, twisted mind, I knew. We'd been separated for a reason.

"Divide and conquer." Nadeshiko was shaking, eyes dilated. "That's—that what Labyrinth does." She coughed. "Divide and conquer, destroy everything that gets in its way. A ruthless killing machine." She met my eyes, and I saw she was crying. "If we're divided..."

"We get conquered," I finished.

"How are we going to regroup?" Yaya's tone was desperate. "We don't even know who else is—" She cut off abruptly. "We don't—"

"No." Nadeshiko shook her head, shivering. "Labyrinth—Labyrinth was built to completely divide. As long as two beings are together inside of it, Labyrinth will try to separate them and kill them alone. It's built to get inside your head, kill you in the worse possible way. Kill you alone and afraid. If the other are—they have to be okay."

"We need to regroup," I said helplessly. "But how?"

Nadeshiko closed her eyes. "I... can lead you together. Labyrinth—there's a way out of it. I can take you there. We just need to find the others so you all get out."

"Then we'll do that." Ikuto stood, face hard. "You hear that?" He shouted. "If anyone else can hear me, there's a way out! Our best chance at survival is with someone else! All we have to do is survive until then, and then we'll be free of this hellhole!"

"We need to get moving." I stood, helping Nadeshiko to her feet. She leaned heavily on me. "There's no way we're digging through this, and from the looks of things, the rubble is supporting the ceiling anyways. We'll just have to find another way around to get everyone else."

"Here." Ikuto scooped his arms up beneath Nadeshiko, carrying her easily with her head lolled against his neck. (Showoff.) "Let's go."

"Right." I turned to the pile, shouting. "We'll find you guys! Just try to reach each other and keep moving!"

"Labyrinth never loses," Nadeshiko mumbled. Her eyes were haunted. "Labyrinth never stops."

* * *

The tunnel ahead stretched and distorted, twisting up above the water and then curving downwards. The crystals did not extend farther than two body's lengths, leaving the end hidden in unfathomable darkness. The air grew cool as we descended deeper into the hole, then chilled, then a biting freeze. It was pitch-black and we had nothing to light our way, not even a faint glint of light from whence we came.

The damp fabric kept me shivering violently in the empty black, clutching at my arms and rubbing my palms together. I could hear heavy breathing and knew from the slight whimper that it was Nadeshiko who made those noises, but that did not keep the terror of the thoughts that perhaps we were being followed.

My limbs were growing numb as we made our way through the tunnel, rocks crunching quietly beneath our feet. Yoru was a miniscule lump inside Ikuto's shirt, shivering and whimpering, and Ikuto clutched him with his palm through his shirt, trying in vain to warm him.

"Anyone got a story?" I tried, shuddering. "Maybe something to keep our minds busy?"

"Nope." I could almost hear Ikuto shrug.

We walked in silence for some time. I had lost sensation in my toes when Nadeshiko spoke.

"Once upon a time there was a princess." Her voice was dead. "She was young, too young to be far from home. She lived with her father in a great palace. Her mother had died at birth, lamenting that she would never see her daughter grow up. She had hair like golden flax and eyes like shining sapphires. Everyone thought she was so beautiful, so that meant she was so kind and so sweet and so perfect. But in reality, she was nothing more than a girl wearing a crown, and she knew it. She bore it in silence.

"Except if she went down to the catacombs beneath the palace, she would hear a voice and see a face, a girl with deep blue skin and eyes like vicious red flames that no one else could see. She had long dark hair that hung loose down her back. Although she looked like some hideous monster that a mother would tell her child stories of to make them behave, she was so like the little princess. The two loved each other very much, a love deeper than sisters, deeper than lovers. They had twin souls.

"But even though they loved each other, it would never be enough. They spent all their time together, but they could never truly be together like they both wanted so badly. So the little princess agonized and remained locked up in her room. The servants heard her speaking as if to herself and thought her crazy. Suitors came calling, and she denied them all. Her father demanded she leave her rooms, but she would not listen, and she wasted away wandering in the catacombs till she was no more than skin and bones and no longer considered beautiful. Her people lost all pity for their lovely princess with her empty arms, never able to hold the one she loved more than anything else.

"Finally one night, contemplating the scarlet that flowed from her wrists like the finest wine, like the shade of her great love's eyes, she followed her love into the catacombs, and the two found peace in the darkness.

"Her father tore himself to pieces in anguish."

Nadeshiko's voice was empty and cold, dying into the silence of the darkness, and we continued on. I forgot my toes; the rest of me had grown just as numb.

* * *

It came to my attention that the tunnel was growing marginally warmer as we trudged through, sending my body tingling. The tunnel was curving back upwards, and although we had no light, the fear of the black had begun to dwindle.

"I can walk." Nadeshiko was soft but insistent, and I heard Ikuto's footsteps come to a halt. There was a soft tap, and I sensed her straightening. "Thank you," she said quietly.

Ikuto's tone was cordial and gentle. "Of course."

A pause. "You... really didn't have to," she said carefully.

"It wasn't a problem."

Guilt blossomed in the pit of my stomach. How had I ignored the magnanimous tone in his voice for a month? Even if he'd intended to harm her, I should have known better than to believe it was within Ikuto's range and moral beliefs to even consider truly bringing harm to my sister. However angry any of us were... could I really have thought so little of my own friends to believe they would ever be willing to kill another human being, regardless whom it was?

Suddenly grateful for the dark, I stood there in awkward silence until Nadeshiko cleared her throat awkwardly. "We need to keep going. I think I know where we are."

"Where are we?" I asked.

"The catacombs," she said simply. "The Maiden's Tomb."

A chill swept across me skin, and I shivered. I jumped as she took my hand and interlocked our fingers. "It wasn't just a story."

"No." Her voice was quiet. "The two lovers chose to the rest of eternity in their crypt together, with the rest of the lost spirits that traverse the catacombs. That's why it got so cold—we were descending right into the midst of about a hundred thousand spirits. It's also how we got out of here safely; they're not malevolent spirits. Normally."

"Normally," Ikuto repeated.

"Yeah, normally. The catacombs are a maze of tunnels, and it seems like we're only in one tunnel. We would've gotten lost and 're leading us out one of the exits."

"One of the exits."

"There are a lot of exits from the catacombs. Since we're in the labyrinth as well, it could lead to anywhere. Maybe someplace where it's safe, maybe someplace where it's not safe."

"Not safe."

"We won't know until we get where they want us to go."

"Of course."

Far, far ahead, I could just catch the dimmest light, a miniscule little point that beckoned us towards it . "I think I can see the exit."

"Let's hope it's safe," Ikuto said softly, stroking Yoru's little tuft of hair.

The tunnel grew gradually warmer, letting delicious heat seep into the tunnel as we approached. The closer we came, the more I could define from that little circle of light. Black and white blurs morphed into diamonds, a checkered pattern, and as we grew closer, I could see cracks and shattered tiles. There was gold that curled and writhed into graceful patterns and swirls, seemingly out of place, like vines, like snakes. There was brown—knotted, old and wooden, knocked to the side, a rotting table.

Finally we stood at the edge of the hole, casting our gazes around the endless room. The ceiling rose endlessly above, the walls and floor checkered black-and-white like a chessboard, dissolving into earth, wood and roots as the ceiling twisted and curved into an enormous tunnel. The tiles were broken, little weeds and shoots of grass poking through the ancient stones.

In front, a monstrous wooden table had been knocked aside, old and rotting when it used to be ornate. Some distance away, a shattered bottle lay with a worn, decaying note with illegible handwriting and a little tin lay empty but for nasty crumbs, as if creatures had stolen and eaten from it.

"What is this place?" I asked, turning to stare. The gold we had seen was that of what twisted to decorate the walls, glinting and almost life-like, snakes that swallowed the dried brown vines and roots of the chamber from the checkered walls like a prison.

Out of sight of the tunnel as we exited was an enormous hand-held mirror, the blinding white shards scattered by a gilt frame. In the reflection of one, a door was visible, painted blood red in a pointed arch. This was the point from which the snake-gold burst from in a corona of metal, forming spades, hearts, diamonds and clovers in dark crystals. The doorknob had been torn away, and it hung open, barely revealing a dark spectrum of verdant colors with it.

"Undrlond," Nadeshiko said quietly, leading us . "Home of the Reudh-Cwen."

"Bad?" Ikuto asked her tensely as we picked our way through the broken tiles.

Nadeshiko slowed, coming to a stop to kneel at the feet of a skeleton. My stomach dropped with a nasty squelch; it was slowly decomposing, its flesh dark and dried and hanging off greyish bones. Its eyes bulged out of its face and its hair hung lanky and falling from its skull, lips bared to reveal stained teeth.

"Very bad." She stood, leading us towards the door. "The spirits were benevolent, then."

"But it's bad," I said quietly, clutching at my arms.

"It is. But this is also the quickest way out of the labyrinth." She kept moving.

We pushed through the door, stepping into a place of wonder. High above, gigantic toadstools loomed, alongside tall trees lost within all four seasons, from trees blooming with gorgeous blossoms to thick, glossy green leaves, then trees like flames and trees that twisted, empty of life. The water was a thick range of hues, smooth and flowing but iridescent like oil. Worn, fulvous paths made of broken bricks led astray in all directions.

"Her name is Queen Eilca. She has ruled over Undrlond for many ages, after the previous ruler died and the population of Undrlond called for her rule. She's half-faerie and half human, which explains why she enjoys the taste of the flesh of Undrlondians, but particularly humans. She thinks the sweet rot of our corruption and mortality tastes sweet. We can pass through here safely... if she doesn't discover that we're human."

"And can we get through here safely?" Ikuto asked her.

Pink flamingoes with trumpets for beaks fluttered past, their brassy squawks echoing throughout the forest. Little whirring teacups shot past, fluttering their filmy insect wings. From atop the mushrooms, gilled and finned things with buggy eyes and sharp-toothed mouths grinned, wiggling little tails tipped with spikes and coughing up sparkles. On the ground, miniscule fuzzy objects that looked like pants with cotton balls on the waistband marched in lines like ants.

"I don't know."

We stood at the entrance for some time, listening to the forest sounds, many of which were nothing like what I had ever heard before. As we began to walk, I swore I felt eyes following me, but chose to ignore it, my hands tightening on the straps of my pack as we trudged through the wonderland.

* * *

**_Good,_**_ the demon murmured in her ear, invisible to her companions. __**Follow up your end of the bargain, and I will grant you what you wished for.**_

_Nadeshiko said nothing, only continued on through the forest. _You're doing the right thing,_ she told herself. _It'll be worth it in the end.

_She glanced back at the two. Nagihiko had slowed for a moment, eyeing a tree filled with slices of buttered bread, some of which were being eaten by a multitude of different creatures. He plucked one, then hurried to follow after the others. Ikuto kept a firm hold on Yoru's tail, forcing him to follow rather than harass the silvery anchovies that darted through the air, flashing their fins at the frustrated little guardian character. He tugged on Yoru's tail, and Yoru hissed, freeing the terrified baby anchovy from his sharp claws. Ikuto caught Nadeshiko's eye and smiled tentatively. Nadeshiko forced one in return and turned to face forward again, setting her jaw._

It's not like they would survive Labyrinth if I didn't do it.

_Far away, across a dark bridge on a craggy cliff, surrounded by the cruel beauty of Undrlond, a beautiful woman stood at the highest balcony of the palace, looking out over her domain. She was lovely, adorned in soft, floaty shades of blue and white that perfectly matched her eyes, her shining golden hair twisted up in an intricate bun. Running her hand across a rosebud lip, she wiped away droplets of blood and slid her finger into her mouth. She cocked her head ever-so-slightly, as if listening, then smiled, showing pearly white teeth._

_"We have visitors."_

* * *

_Hello, hello! So, I notice there has been some misinterpretation of Nadeshiko and the whole 'poisoned-by-Nox-berries' thing. No, Ikuto did not try to kill her; in fact, she wasn't even poisoned by Nox berries. If you read it carefully, you will see that Ikuto fed her exactly 37 berries, the dose needed to drug her. It was the cosmic fruit/nut/whatever she had in her hands that resembled the Nox berries that hurt her, which she willingly ingested herself for unexplained reasons. Also, Pyr said 'some type of berry', not necessarily the Nox berry. _

_Speaking of Pyr, no, she is not a home-wrecker, and can you really blame her for kissing Ikuto? Like explained previously, nymphs aren't built to deal with human emotions. If she likes Ikuto, how would she be able to control that feeling? Also, it appears Amu and Ikuto are having some relationship problems and haven't even been seen hanging out very much; who says she knows that they're even together and that Ikuto isn't up for grabs?_

___Please review!_


	12. Kukai Gets Coconuts!

_Read and review!_

___All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Yaya**

"So pretty," I breathed.

The tunnel was brief and brightly lit with light that reflected off the water, the walls of the cave damp and covered with moss. The end of the tunnel was paradise; the water was a clear turquoise blue, the edges of the cave fringed with bright green vines. Trees peeked through, wiggling sheaths of fronds through the entrance and rubbery leaves that dripped with tropical hues. The call of the jungle echoed against the walls of the tunnel, bird and insect cries and buzzes ringing through the trees like invisible mist.

"It's a rainforest," Kukai said, his eyes wide, "or something like that."

"Anways, weapons out." He tugged two knives from his pack. "I hope you're good with them, because I'm not."

"But it's a rainforest," I said, confused. "A paradise."

"Exactly." He nodded. "And if there's anything I learned about paradises, there's always something a little too off. That first jungle would have been fine except for those manticores, harpies and chimarae. The big grass forest Rima and the others were in would have been fine except for the scorpions and the gigantic preying mantises—oh, and that bird. And the crystal caves would have been fine except for—"

"Except for the fact that we're still in the labyrinth, so of course something's bad." He sighed as we walked out of the tunnel and into bright, warm sunlight. "Are you better with a bow-and-arrow or a knife?"

"Um. Neither." I turned in a slow circle, rubbing my arms. "Well, it's a rainforest all right. It's also a rift valley."

"Really? How can you tell?"

"We're completely surrounded by highlands and there's enough water and heat around here to suggest lowlands." I gestured around us. "Also, the walls of the highlands are sloped down at an angle consistent with that of a graben."

"Hm." He grinned. "You wouldn't have, perhaps, have learned this from a certain special boy with green hair and blue eyes?"

I flushed and opened my mouth to reply, but all air was knocked from my lungs as a nasty screech drowned out everything else. A piercing whir slammed into my ears, and I cried out, clutching at them before Kukai grabbed my arm and yanked me to a crouch beneath a tree, slapping a hand over my mouth. An enormous craft shot overhead, sleek and shining, shaped like a disc and similarly iridescent. Bright blue light flared from the back as it shot away, leaving my ears ringing painfully.

"Jesus," Kukai breathed in my ear, "that was terrifying."

I nodded, gasping for breath. I could feel both our hearts pounding madly in our chests. "You can say that again. You were right—there is something off."

"A spaceship." Kukai laughed somewhat helplessly. "There is a spaceship flying around above a jungle."

I shivered, and he squeezed my shoulder. "Maybe whoever's piloting that thing is friendly?"

"I'm not sure I want to find out. I'm not sure we have any choice, though." He sighed, helping me to my feet. "If they are, they might help us, and if they're not... well..."

"We run?" I asked in a small voice.

"We run."

He handed me a knife. "This vegetation is really thick, but I don't think we should cut it, just in case the plants have a mind of their own or something."

We set off, brushing vines and leaves away and slapping at gnats and flies that dive-bombed our faces. The plant life was thick and the sounds of the forest were loud in my ears, but I paid more attention to the prickly sweat slicking my limbs and stinging my eyes, filling my mouth with the saccharine-salt taste.

How long had we been walking? Minutes? Hours? To me, it felt like days, several very, very hot days, and_ dear God when would it end?_

"You doing all right?" Kukai called back to me. His own skin was slick, covered in miniscule droplets of sweat, his eyes heavily lidded from the exertion.

"Hold on a second," I said weakly, tugging at my own shirt in futile gesture to remove it. "It's so hot..."

"Need help?" Kukai chuckled lightly and stepped forward, grasping the fabric gently and tugging it up over my head. "There we go."

"Thanks," I panted, wiping at my brow with the soaked remains of what used to be a shirt but was really just a really wet and stinky rag.

"Here." He wrung it out and tied it around my head. "You have a big head."

I gasped, clutching at my skull. "I do not! Wait, do I? Really?!"

He busted out laughing, and I punched him, my face burning in embarrassment. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding, take it easy, Yaya!"

"Well—your face is fat! Fatty!"

"Oh, jeez!" He clutched as his chest dramatically, his expression morphing into one of mock pain. "It hurts, it hurts!"

"Kukai! Stop it!"

"I think I'm dying, I think you broke my heart!"

"It's not _funny!"_

"It's broken, I'm dying! Oh, this is the end!"

_"Kukai!"_

"Oh, the agony!" Or at least, that seemed to be what he was trying to say, but he was laughing too hard. I growled, half in frustration and half in trying not to laugh, shoving at his shoulder.

"Stop laughing!" I stomped my foot, and he nearly fell over, dragging me with him.

"Can't—breathe!"

"Argh! Shut up!" I couldn't help but laugh breathlessly, still attempting to punch him. "Idiot!"

He defended himself, gasping for air as I pummeled his hands. Somehow, our little wrestling contest turned from a mock fight into a real embrace, and I buried my face into his shoulder, shaking and sniffling as he comforted me.

"Hey, hey, everything's gonna be okay," he murmured, stroking my hair. "We'll get out of this."

"But you don't _know_ that." My voice broke. "Everything—it all just came crashing down on our heads, and now we don't even know where everyone is, or even if they're still alive—"

"Don't think like that," Kukai said firmly. "Everyone is fine. We'll get out of this place alive, all of us. C'mon." He tugged my to my feet, grasping my hand firmly. "They're fine, and once this is all over, we'll gorge at that candy shop we all used to eat at."

"Y—yeah. And I'll get a Triple Decker Super Sweet Ice Cream Bomb." I smiled weakly.

"Better make it extra large like always." He chuckled.

I nodded, wiping at my face and sniffling. "With fudge syrup and nuts."

"Exactly. But first things first, we need to find out more about that spaceship."

"Okay. Kukai?"

"Mmm?"

"I'm hungry."

He snorted, ruffling my hair. "All right, maybe we'll eat first before."

"Right. Um. Any of these plants look familiar to you?"

"Errrr..." He glanced around, scratching his head. "Maybe... Oh! Are those coconuts?"

"Where? Oh. They're not hairy and brown."

"Well, I mean, they're not bad," Kukai said defensively. "They're green, yeah. Aren't they still edible even if they're not ripe?"

I frowned, thinking. "I thought coconuts were supposed to be brown and hairy. Also, don't they only grow around beaches? This is a jungle."

"They could be a different type of coconut," he insisted. "Come on. They sure look edible. I'm pretty sure unripe coconuts still have juice or something in them."

"I guess..." I said doubtfully, eyeing the odd looking fruit.

"Really." He strode over to the tree, looking . "And just to prove you wrong, I'll get them myself. You'll see. They're fine."

"Wait, Kukai—!"

"You'll see!" He looked the tree up and down, determined, then grabbed the trunk and tried to push on it. The tree didn't budge.

"Kukai—"

"Hold on, I'm getting there!" He kicked it, then sighed in frustration when the palms only barely quivered. Contemplating the palm tree for a moment, he kicked off his shoes and tried to shimmy up the tree. With a loud thump, he slid back down and landed painfully on his butt. "OW! Almost there!"

"But—"

"Just be a little more patient, I've almost got it!" He hit the ground again and struggled to his feet with new fervor. He slid back down to the ground again.

"You're not even—!"

"Almost, I swear! You'll see!" And again.

"Would you just—!"

"You'll see!" And again.

"Just—"

"They're fine, I swear! Yaya, just calm down, I've got this!"

"Kukai, shut up!" I screamed, and he stopped, blinking in surprise. "I've got this," I insisted, pulling a knife from the pack. "I've been practicing ever since I learned how." I hurried back, clambering unsteadily up a much lower tree with firm, low hanging branches. "Utau taught me after she got good enough at it back with the nymphs."

"Utau? Taught you? What are you—"

With shaking, unsteady fingers, I took aim and hurtled the knife forward. It shot from my grip end over end before just barely slicing the vine before sailing off into the distance. I huffed, then pulled another knife, throwing it and missing completely, expending four more before I sliced the vine enough that it fell to the ground on its own.

Kukai dodged out of the way, eyes wide. "Utau taught you that?"

"Yup!" I hurried past him, gathering up the fruit and the scattered knives that lay on the ground. "You know, you're right, I think these will be great!" I grinned.

He blinked, then chuckled. "Well, now I know I can never make Utau angry or I'll have a knife in my eye."

"Or you'll get whipped. Literally," I said matter-of-factly. "She's pretty good with that thing, at least for an amateur."

"Did she teach you that, too?"

"Um. She tried." I giggled sheepishly. "After I kind of broke a window, she switched to knives and I just watched when she practiced with her whip."

"So clumsy." He grinned, and I huffed, shoving him.

"Be nice, I got us coconuts." I thought for a moment. "That's a funny sentence."

"Maybe." He shrugged. "I think the whole 'breaking-a-window-and-switching-to-knives' sounds weirder."

"Touché."

* * *

_The sun glimmered on the far edge of the horizon deep indigo clouds with pink bellies like glowing veils clustered against the dark blue skies. The air was cold, fogging windows and scattering heat. Seiyo Academy stood tall and proud, glowing white singed warm yellow in the winter chill, the trees rustling softly in the breeze. A thin dusting of snow touched the ground lightly, slicking _

_Kukai's breath was visible in the air, coming out in short puffs. He hiked the sleeping girl on his back up a little higher, grunting as he hurried through the cold. Strapped to his side was a duffel bag, _

_In the winter months, the soccer team held practices after school inside the new gymnasium, honing their skills for the coming season. They would spend time that could stretch into hours. The new fundraiser for the faux-grass field had been endlessly tiring—they were extremely expensive—but they'd gotten the money, and so the team spent as much time as possible to earn their money's worth from the floor as best they could._

_This latest practice had stretched out until the sun was almost set, and Kukai, as team captain, had completely forgotten something just as important to him as soccer._

_"Isn't that your sister?" One of his friends had asked him once practice was over. "The one sleeping in the bleachers over there."_

_Kukai had turned in surprise to see Yaya snoring loudly on the sidelines, with her hair falling out of her scarlet ribbons and her Guardian cape askew. Instead of going home alone as he'd insisted, she'd waited all this time, the idiot. To top it all off, she wouldn't wake up no matter how hard he poked, pinched or yelled. She may as well have fallen into a coma, for God's sake. And so, grumbling to himself, he had no choice but to bring her home himself, carrying her on his back. _

_She was much heavier than she looked—probably from all the sweets she ate—and she smelled strongly of sweet things and sugar, which normally wouldn't be a bad combination, unless the scent was shoved up your nose because she was breathing into it and it was making him a little sick. He swore he could smell it rotting her teeth._

_(Also, it didn't help that an evil demon was hovering right over his head, but of course Kukai didn't know that.)_

_With a burst of light and a slam of shimmering golden energy, the demon was knocked away with a horrible wail. Kukai froze and looked up, startled, but all he could see was a large, very ugly bird in the distance, squawking and cawing noisily. He blinked, then shrugged, utterly unconcerned with the hideous flying creature._

_Amu, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Not that he knew that. After all, he hadn't seen a girl with bright pink hair and a body entirely comprised of golden energy with a lock and key glittering at her neck ram into an ugly demonic creature. But even if he had, who would have believed him?_

_With a pant, he dumped her on the bench, brushing at the rapidly cooling beads of sweat sliding down his brow. White fog billowed from his lips into the frozen air, She continued to sleep, slumping against his shoulder and snoring almost obnoxiously loudly. Kukai looked down at her, amused, and she mumbled in her sleep, snuggling closer. He thought he heard "brother" and his chest squeezed, almost painfully._

_He leaned down and pressed his lips to her temple, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ears. "Sleep tight, little sister."_

* * *

As it turned out, the coconut juice was fairly tasty, although I found the insides tasted chewy and they were hard to crack open. Still, they were refreshing, and as we sat almost entirely hidden by a mossy hollow log that reeked of decay, peeking over at the spaceship base, the experience wasn't too unpleasant.

The spaceship base was low to the ground, all curved and arching black like some obsidian manta ray resting in a wide, graceful circle with a glowing blue circumference. Within the circle, sweeping into the manta ray's mouth, a number of spaceships—like manta-rays themselves, bright platinum disks that swept overhead.

The beings piloting the spaceships were too far to see clearly, but their form was humanoid, skin entirely covered with jungle camouflage and sleek, forest green helmets. It was too dangerous to get a closer look, but from the muscled, lean forms and the sleek golden weapons shining faintly in gloved hands, it was doubtful that they were a peaceful people.

I eyed one of the pilots, whose hostile behavior was only supported by stiff, harsh stance and the trigger-happy way he carried his weapon. "So... I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that maybe we should hold off a little on meeting with them."

"Maybe. We can't really just barge in, we'd get shot. But we can't be caught skulking around or we'll look even more suspicious."

"Sooo..."

"So we need to figure out quick if they're willing to help people like us, or if they're a less than kind. Best thing we can do right now is find someplace safe to spend the night and check out our options again in the morning. Why don't we go back to that cave we first came in through?"

As it turned out, the cave wasn't as difficult to relocate as one would think—as the tunnel was still blocked on one end with boulders, it seemed that any other exits from the rift valley were located elsewhere, which meant that the one cave was now useless as any entrance or exit but quite suitable for a camp.

At night, it seemed the entire world was alight with insects, ones that flickered and shone in the darkness, lighting everything up with rich blue that reminded me of the spaceships. It was beautiful, if somewhat daunting, just as many things had been for the past few months.

"Should we start a fire? For safety?" I asked hopefully, eyeing the few dry spots for resting on along the watery cavern. It was hot during the day, but this was already clearly no rift valley on Earth, and nighttime wherever we were could end up a lot colder than the ones back on Earth.

"No, not a fire." He shook his head. "Too dangerous, if they spot us... Or if we attract something bad..."

I pouted. "I guess you're right. No light, then?"

"Hmm..." I could see the glow of the lightning bugs in his eyes, a pulsating blue. "How long do you think it would take to capture enough fireflies for a strong light?"

"Too long," I insisted. "I don't want to prance around swatting at glowing bugs!"

"Aw, c'mon," he protested, "it'll go fast if we do it together."

Which meant that the sun had set long before we captured enough luminescent insects to fill a single jar and we were both exhausted and soaked with sweat.

"I told you it would work," Kukai told me, nudging my side. "And it only took about forty-five minutes."

"Ugh." I collapsed against him, ignoring the fact that he smelled like he'd run through several landfills, rolled around in dinosaur droppings, and then bathed in tomato paste. "That was awful."

"But we have light."

"And warmth, I suppose," I conceded grudgingly, scooting closer to him. We sat in comfortable silence, slowly sipping the juice from the coconut and scraping out the jelly-like substance, wiping at the sticky residue on our faces.

"Did you ever love me?"

I looked at him in surprise, and he stared back, gaze questioning. Or maybe it wasn't a question; I'd always thought he'd known. Maybe I was wrong.

"Yeah, I did," I said after a moment, smiling slightly. "I remember way back in fourth grade, I was in the girl's bathroom after school because one of the teachers made me cry. I spent almost a half an hour in there before you were pounding on the door demanding I come out. When I finally did, you dragged me outdoors and scolded me until I was crying again, and then hugged me until I stopped. I remember I liked you holding me, and I didn't really want you to let go. It just... blossomed after that."

"That's a long time."

I laughed. "It was. I guess it took me a long time to get over it. 'Specially 'cause you were, like, my older brother and I was your little sister. Which made it even worse, y'know. But I guess you can't help who you fall in love with."

He was silent for a moment. I could feel his chest rising and falling slowly. "That's wrong," he said quietly, "because I didn't always think of you as my little sister."

"Really?" Kukai's were intensely hazel; it was as if a corona of glowing orange had burst from his pupils, like twin suns in a twin eclipse.

"Not always, no. It was... a little before Amu came, and then for a little while after I met Utau. I remember it was after soccer practice, and you were waiting for me so we could walk home together."

He chuckled softly. "You were so cute and little—sleeping on the bench with your face pressed against the bleachers. Your hair was all messed up and you were snoring really loud. I remember brushing the hair out of your face, and thinking that you were growing up so fast... Someday, I thought you'd have a husband and kids; someday, you'd follow your dreams, even though you only wanted to be a baby and I wanted to be free to make my own choices. And I realized I really wanted to be a part of that dream."

"Sweet." I giggled, then sighed, gazing off into the distance. "Too bad we fell in love with other people, huh?"

I thought of Kairi, with his serious blue eyes and his soft green hair, the way he smiled and the way he frowned. The way he kissed me like he thought he'd never get the chance, held me like it was the last time he'd ever do so. All the things that made me love him more than I thought was possible. Just the thought of him made my heart hurt and made me smile. I looked at Kukai and saw him tracing the veins on his hands, wistful smile on his face, and knew he was thinking the same sort of things about Utau.

His gaze sharpened, as if coming back to the real world, or however real this world could be. "I think maybe... if I hadn't met Utau and you didn't have Kairi..."

"We could've ended up together." I looked at him. "Just like the movies."

"Yeah." Kukai slipped his fingers into my hand and interlocked them. "But life doesn't always play out that way, does it?"

"Well, when you've got two magical artifacts working against that, you don't really end up with a choice, right?" I joked.

He blew his lips out softly. "That's just the thing, though. Our whole lives... if you and I had ended up together, would it really have made such a difference? What if Amu ended up with Tadase instead of Ikuto? Whatever the Lock and Key are working towards... could it just as easily accomplish whatever it is we're destined to do if we were just paired together differently?"

I blinked. "That's an odd idea."

"It is," he said quietly, "but it kind of makes sense, doesn't it?"

"Is it one you've been thinking on?"

"Just since we found out about the whole Destiny thing."

He met my gaze, and I exhaled. "Do you think we really could have worked out?"

Kukai smiled. He leaned forward and kissed my temple slowly, sweetly. I closed my eyes briefly, brushing his cheek gently with the tips of my fingers as he pulled away. His eyes were soft and reminiscent, almost a little sad.

"Yeah. We could have."

I thought of what could have been. Maybe if it had all happened differently. I could see myself spending happy hours together, dancing, laughing, just sitting down and talking. We seldom argued, and when we did, we would always work it out, quickly and efficiently. Being around Kukai was comforting and pleasant, like sunlit days and fresh, clean air. I liked feeling that way.

It was possible, of course, and yet at the same time it wasn't. Because even though I knew how easily it could've worked out, a part of me was glad it didn't. Not when being with Kairi was like sliding into a hot bath on a cold day, not when it felt just as easy to be with him. Kairi was something beautiful and perfect, just within reach, but like a mystery I could never really solve. Not when I was willing to do whatever it would take just to figure him out.

I closed my eyes, imagining, feeling the hot jungle breeze brush slowly across my cheek and seep into my skin. I could just hear the sounds of the forest, of insects droning quietly and amphibians squeaking and croaking. It was beautiful. Then Kukai inhaled sharply, and I opened my eyes to find us surrounded.

They no longer wore their helmets and their military dress was slimmer, more fitted. All had rick dark skin, like the trees of the jungle, and gleaming silver hair, some chopped short and some down to their shoulders. In the glow of the fireflies, their faces were illuminated blue. They could've almost been human, except for their eyes—shimmering liquid silver irises, pupil-less, like miniature moons or flickering silver-white flames. Each of their weapons, blue and gold, were aimed at our faces.

I let out a loud shriek, before Kukai shoved me face forward. I smashed into the mud, spitting out bugs and choking on gravel, writhing in shock, and felt a boot on the small of my back. Above me, I heard Kukai grunt in pain, and he landed on the ground beside me with a painful thump. I couldn't see anything but dirt. The foot dug in, almost painfully, and a small note of pain escaped me.

I could hear Kukai shouting, voice piercing my ear from somewhere on the ground beside me. "We're not hostile! Don't hurt her, we're not hostile!"

"Knock 'em out," I heard a gruff, hard voice say, and with a painful whack to the back of my head, all I saw was darkness.

Before I blacked out, I could feel something grating harshly against my ankles and wrists, sand could hear faint whispers rising above my head and fading into the distance.

* * *

_Yep. I added Kukai/Yaya into the story. Mainly because I wanted to outline how differently their lives could have gone if it hadn't been for the Humpty Lock and Dumpty Key. If Kukai wasn't so perfect for Utau and Kairi for Yaya (almost uncannily perfect, I might add), Kukai and Yaya could have had a happy life together; after all, they were already close, they share a lot of interests, had fairly compatible personalities, and he always seemed able to put up with her immaturity the best out of all of the characters. Same with some of the other characters. Maybe that seems like an odd or difficult concept to grasp, but the fact that all the characters were all paired up so neatly (excluding poor Tadase, of course) has always bugged me a little._

_Anyways, please review!_


	13. Bloogle-Nut Jelly Is Delicious!

_Before you go any further, I have something important to say. I can tell you here and now that not everything will be revealed right away, so not everything will make sense. Please don't expect to immediately get all the answers. I understand if you're confused, but I think I can promise that most of your questions will be answered when the series has ended._

_More importantly, you need to know that one of the main themes of this trilogy is coming-of-age. This is where the nine main characters from Shugo Chara! grow up; this is where they lose their innocence and become adults. The ending of this trilogy will not be entirely happy. These characters will be dealing with loss, pain, and a number of sorrows that may take some of the more childish parts of their personalities to a certain extent. As I bet most of you are already aware, no one remains the same forever; you're not the same person you were two or three years ago, and these characters will certainly not be the same as they were in the manga/anime by the end of this fan fiction. If you're not willing to see them grow up or suffer, then I'm very sorry to say this may not be the fan fiction for you. _

_But please give it a try. I love all my readers. :)_

_Read and review!_

_All rights go to Peach-Pit!_

* * *

**Kukai**

When I had regained consciousness, it was through a painful stab in my neck. The world, which spun and twirled nastily, took far too long to right and was no more comforting when it did. They had dragged us to what I assumed was the base, from the fact that wide, odd windows that flickered and shimmered displayed the thick jungle forests, little blue lights darting and flashing across the screen that I realized were words. Glowing screens conveyed a mass of information and a small arsenal of weapons, presumably hand held, lined the walls. The chairs were small, simple white cylinders with concave tops, and each of the screens were boxed in with some form of protective glass I guessed was extremely difficult to penetrate.

Hands yanked me upright, and I growled through my gag, glaring at the boy who had pushed me to the ground. His silver eyes flickered, and he mouthed something I couldn't understand. He gestured behind me, and I craned my head, catching a glimpse of white and silver doe eyes so bright they almost seemed to glow.

"Head 8-X, we caught both trespassers." The gruff voice from before spoke directly above me, and I turned my head to see one with a harsh, scarred face. "Our spies have determined through their conversation that they pose little threat. Due to the unusual nature of their entrance and their apparent interests in leaving the Valley, separate interrogation is recommended in order to clarify their purpose."

"I see." Head 8-X's voice was simple and smooth, and somehow alluring in tone. "Protocol?"

"Deemed Protocol 2, Head."

"Understandable. Thank you, Unit Eight. Dismissed."

The metal floors clicked under the steel-toed rubber boots of the unit as they exited the room, the doors whooshing shut behind them and clicking audibly. I struggled to sit up, and a small hand pulled me to a sitting position.

Head 8-X was small and thin, almost a delicate wisp of a girl. She looked almost like some sort of elfin doll—smooth, translucent white skin, pearly hair that fell down her back, enormous argentate eyes without pupils or whites fringed with thick silver lashes, and a very small nose. She was an unnatural sort of pretty, almost frighteningly so; lovely and perfect and utterly inhuman, undeniably alien. She looked to be but sixteen years of age.

"I apologize for the rough treatment," she said calmly, voice pure and soft, "but all abnormal occurrences are monitored by Base and dealt with in a logical fashion."

"What is this place?" I demanded. "Who are you people?"

"I could ask the same of you." She rose from her chair. "That will come in due time. Why don't you get comfortable?"

There was a thin ripping sound, and my arms and legs were free, the ties split without being touched, and I stood slowly, watching her warily as she crossed the floor soundlessly and waved her hand lightly. The window in front of her flickered as the odd symbols lined up in boxes and swirled into patterns and shapes. I took one of the cylinder-seats cautiously, still eyeing the alien girl.

The girl turned back, glancing at my distant position. "You have nothing to fear from me as long as you cooperate. Now, let's start with the basics. What is your name?" I kept my mouth shut, and she arched one pale brow. "Where do you hail from?" I glared at her. "Are you planning on saying anything, or are will you simply sit there glaring at me as if I've killed your pet?"

I crossed my arms and remained silent. She sighed softly, eyes fixed on mine. My mind went oddly blank, and I stared back at her, transfixed. A low buzz filled my ears and shivered along my skin numbing my nerves. Her eyes flickered, and she blinked, smiling at me.

"It's very nice to meet you, Kukai. I am X, Command Intelligence Head of Unit Eight in training of Base 4TY-7839. You are on Imperion-2045, District 32 of the moon Imperion in Galaxy F9. You are several hundred thousand light years away from your home planet Earth. Also, I promise that no one in this Base will bring you any harm without my command, and I have no reason to do so. You are also trapped in a connection of wormholes consisting of imbalanced energies tied to a respiratory and circulatory system with a similar imbalance."

My jaw dropped. "Uh..."

She smiled apologetically. "I'm afraid the difficulties you presented led me to infiltrate your nervous system and view your memories unauthorized. Unit Eight, the presence of the second trespasser has been deemed a necessity."

Five seconds later, Yaya was shoved through the door, yelping as she stumbled. I hurried forward to catch her, and she blinked up at me, smiling. "You're still being questioned?"

Behind her stepped the boy from before, grinning and thumping my shoulder. Now that I had gotten a closer look, I saw he appeared to be in his early twenties, and had it not been for the bulging muscles that stretched his deep green camouflage, I could have pegged him for any other mischievous young adult looking for trouble. "The name's S. Sorry for the rough handling, bro. Gotta be careful." His smile flickered. "Hey, X."

X's expression held an oddly conflicting emotion for a fraction of a second before she smoothed it over, smiling back. The two were a stark contrast, a comparison of a white feather to a dark jewel. "Hello, S."

"It's okay, Kukai," Yaya assured me, "they're not bad, we just appeared out of nowhere and freaked them out a little."

"That is perhaps one way of putting it," the Head said easily. "It is considered highly unusual for any unauthorized personnel to be present in Rift 4TY-7839, particularly when it is dark outside."

"Really?" I asked, frowning. "Is it dangerous?"

X sank into her seat slowly. "Many of the more predatory inhabitants of Rift 4TY-7839 are nocturnal and prefer the cooler climate with its high humidity and the spike in energy levels. Some of these creatures have adapted to include our people—that is to say, humans, although perhaps evolved differently than your particular species—as part of their prey. Due to this fact, our government, the Union, has deemed it necessary to wipe out said species in order to maintain an emergency Base in this particular section of Galaxy F9."

"Why can't they just move it out of Rift 4TY-7839?" Yaya asked curiously. "There's gotta be a better place, right?"

"Not that's actually habitable. The rest of Imperion is surrounded by freaking huge asteroids and the surface of the planet is either dead or covered in water that's filled with more animals." S shrugged. "And Imperion is about naid trigowalts from any other Base in Galaxy F9. It's basically a really, really long way away from everything else."

"Do you guys have any idea how geeky this feels right now?" Yaya mumbled. "I feel like I've been transported into some spacey sci-fi show. Complete with lightsabers and weird hand gestures."

S looked confounded. "Light sabers? As far as I knew, only the Qui used lightsabers, and only for defense purposes. They're not exactly good weapons unless you like really close combat."

"Well, why don't you evacuate?" I asked X.

"Due to the hostile relationship with Rift 4TY-7839 and Base 4TY-7839, Union has ceased all but most necessary contact until it forms a decision regarding the continued existence of Base 4TY-7839. We therefore remain on probation, which prohibits any evacuation unless in dire need of assistance." X sighed. "I'm sorry to tell you this, but we have no way of helping you leave Rift 4TY-7839. Your arrival meant nothing more than a sudden, unexplained appearance of unidentified organic beings on our eltargram. We have no way of discerning any other wormholes in the area."

"We can give you supplies, but after that, you guys'd be on your own," S told us. "You can stay for a while, I bet—I mean, I don't think there are any rules against harbouring aliens from your galaxy, so we could probably slip through a couple loopholes."

"In any case, it would not be wise to venture out into the valley without proper protection and training during night," X agreed. "On Imperion, we experience full darkness due to the full eclipse of our sister moon Iolan, which will last for three full moons, or your equivalent to six months of a year."

"Soooo... basically we're screwed."

"Yep!" S said cheerfully. "Why don't I take you on a tour of the building? X here doesn't need us to bother her, she's got important Head work to do. Let's go!"

As he dragged us both out (well, more along the lines of S and Yaya frog-marching me away), I caught a glimpse of X, watching us leave with a longing expression on her face, the light from the screens reflecting off her large eyes.

* * *

The Base was, surprisingly enough, a fairly small place; as it was, the shining black exterior was an effective defense. Anti-force fields were planted in sensors all along the outside walls, which forced any direct attempts away, bouncing of harmlessly. There were deactivated land mines beneath the air field that could be reactivated and deactivated easily with mental recognition. There were also sensor-activated lasers buried deep in the walls with what S called "freaking awesome death-ray version", which would slice/fry anything that didn't have a special sensor in its suit that tried to breach the wall, and "that other version" that would be activated if anything or anyone tried to mess with with the Base's structural supports by attacking Rift 4TY-7839 itself and hold everything together.

"We've also got this enormous underground bunker about two naids underground—well, that's a big distance, anyway, and it's basically made of almost all the same things, except that's portable. We also have a lot of escape pods just in case." S shrugged his shoulders. "But both of those are on lockdown by the Union, so until we get their okay or until we're actually under an attack where those are necessary for our survival, we're only allowed to monitor them."

"What about if you have spies or something?" Yaya asked. "How do you get around them?"

S sighed. "Each of our minds has its own sort of signature—an aura, I guess you could say. Normally, all our mental activity and aura has the same appearance and data associated with it. Any odd activity, and we deal with that."

Inside the Base, the corridors were silent but for the quiet buzz and soft electronic noises that filled the airy echoes of the halls. Every smooth silver door that lined the wall remained shut as we passed, intricate white lines engraved in angular patterns all over the door.

S hummed to himself. He lifted a hand to the door, pressing his palm flat against the very center. The white lines began to glow, and the door slid open.

"Right, so this is my room. I've got one roommate and one spare bed, so whoever sleeps here'll have to sleep on the floor, unless you want to be the one to explain to my buddy that he doesn't get a bed anymore. Anyways, I think I have a couple bros who still have another bunk leftover."

"I can sleep here," I offered. "I'll just..."

"Dump your stuff here?" S laughed. "I'm starving anyways."

The Hall was one main room, large enough to fill about three hundred men and women, with row after row of rectangular metal tables like one would see in a cafeteria. As a matter of fact, it did look like a cafeteria mixed with an auditorium mixed with a gym, with odd lines on the floor like on some field or court with a small platform and enormous screen rising high above the gathered individuals. The outside scenery was visible, flickering lightly in the evening glow.

"You guys arrived just at dinnertime," S told us, waving at several people who called his name. He gestured grandly at the cafeteria trays, which were small metal squares with pockets filled with unfamiliar foods in rather disturbing forms, such as brightly colored gell-like substances in perfect cubes, a thick, chunky brown sauce poured in a circle over four perfectly cylindrical green tubes, and a mushy black slop with visible grains. "You're in for a treat tonight, apparently!" He laughed happily, swiping at a woman's plate and taking a bite from the neon green jelly. "One of the patrols must've swiped enough bloogle-nuts to make bloogle-nut jelly!"

"Bloogle-nuts?" Yaya asked warily as the woman snatched her jelly back, shooting S a mock-dirty look.

"Um—I don't know how to describe them, since I guess you don't have them on your planet. Um, sometimes when they're ripe, they're large, brown and kind of hairy, but these, which are yellowish and smooth, make really good jelly. The other kind of this white fleshy stuff inside that tastes good."

Actually, I think we do have them on our planet. We just call them coconuts." I grinned at Yaya, who pouted and punched my arm.

"Cool, really? A _coconut?" _He said the word slowly. "That sounds weird."

"So does _bloogle-nut."_

S chuckled. "What about black lot-grass?" He gestured to the black mushy stuff. "It needs to be dehusked and cooked with hyrdate, but lot-grass also comes in red, white and brown."

"So it's rice!" Yaya was amazed. "And you call water 'hydrate'?"

"You call hydrate 'water'?" S smirked.

I shrugged. "What about the sauce and the tubes?"

"The sauce is probably made from some of the game we catch here in Rift-4TY-7839. The tubes are leavens, made from some of the malley the Union sends us. We call it brown semolina."

Yaya blew out her lips, frowning. "Um. So, it's like a meat sauce... like for spaghetti... and the leavens...?"

"Like dough, maybe? So they'd be noodles?" I suggested. "It's a pasta. You know, it's funny, but your say your colors the same. Like, red is red and white is white, instead of red being, I don't know, larg?"

S blinked. "That's kinda weird. And how we speak the same language, right? Alðompanir. And, like, you understand my slang or whatever."

"Wait, what? _Alðompanir?_ What the heck is that?"

"What do you mean, what is that? You're speaking it right now!" S looked astounded.

"I don't know about you, but I thought I was speaking Japanese!" I threw my hands up in the air. "I have no idea what Alðompanir is!"

"Maybe it's a human thing?" Yaya interrupted. "Kairi said that there are multiple versions of human worlds. Ours is one and yours is another. Sometimes you share things—kind of telepathically, I guess. Maybe we shared some stuff, like colors, but not others, like how we name our food and water. Maybe all humans know Alðompanir, because you shared it."

"Look, are you guys going to move it and get some food, or what?" Several annoyed voices from behind chimed in, agreeing fervently.

"Yeah, I'm hungry."

"You can explain our _oh-so-wondrous_ world later, S. I want my jelly."

"Keep your trousers on, you gluttons." S rolled his eyes. "We've got bloogle-nuts, by the way."

"Seriously?" One of the girls gaped. "So close to the eclipse?"

"I know, crazy, right?" S made a face. "Coulda' gotten eaten. By a panthera, no less."

"Eaten?" Yaya's eyes widened with alarm. "What do you mean, eaten?"

"S shrugged. "Like X said, Rift is filled with a lot of predators. Predators that think we taste good."

"Bet they think we taste sweet." A man beside us scoffed. "Sweet rot of corruption, maybe."

"Nah, you're all wrong. We're just fun to catch." Another girl laughed. "Gives them a little challenge."

"Pshh. Yeah, our almighty guns can totally contend with a freakin' monongulate," someone called, and they all laughed.

"Guys, guys, they have no idea what we're talking about," S said breezily. "And we haven't even reached the kitchens yet with the bloogle-nuts!"

"What the heck is a monongulate?" Yaya muttered to me.

"Beats me. I'm still trying to get over coconuts being called bloogle-nuts."

"Anyways, I'm R." A girl scooted close to Yaya, smiling brightly. "Nice to meet you. I'm just going to go out on a limb here and assume you're probably not from this galaxy, so anything else about me won't make any sense to you."

"Yeah, probably not," Yaya replied cheerfully. "I'm Yaya! That's Kukai. He's a special one."

"Oh, a special one." R laughed. "I can tell." She cast me a look, smirking.

"Yeah, I can tell."

"Oh, yeah. Definitely special."

Most of the names were a single letter or symbol, even a single number, I came to notice. A girl with caramel skin and bronze hair was named 6. An enormous man with bulging muscles and a soft-spoken voice was named T, and a short, stout man with an abundance of scars was 5. Another woman was 子. I came to realize that the strange eyes were not purely silver like X's, but held iridescence or flecks of different colors like forest green or blood red. Most of them had rich dark skin tones, although there were lighter-skinned men and women, although none so pale as X.

"You got a tablet with you, S?" T smiled gently at us. "We can show them pictures so they know at least what we're talking about."

"Right, right." S fumbled around in his uniform pockets, pulling out a clear rectangle. He rolled his thumb over the screen, and it expanded to the size of an open book, glowing with colors. The screen left his hands to float, and he moved it in front of his face, eyes searching. "Ah—hold on. Just let me..." He hummed some tune as his fingers flickered over the screen. Nothing happened.

"Listened to music, did we?" 6 raised an eyebrow. S stuck his tongue out at her.

"That's so cool," Yaya breathed. "How is it doing that?"

"Doing what? Oh, floating? Ah, it's just a simple process of using triple-synthesized Tort waves to simulate a combination of stabilized matter and radiant light.

"Our tablets don't float," I told them, and their eyes went wide. "And we can't make them grow or shrink. Also, they're made of metal, crystals, microchips... That sort of thing."

"Seriously? That's so old-fashioned!" 子 exclaimed. "Do you still use cars, too?"

" 子, not the time," 5 told her sternly. "You're going to confuse them even more."

"And I'm _not_ confused? They call bloogle-nuts coconuts and their tablets don't float!"

"Right." S's fingers flew across the tablet. Immediately pictures of a formidable black beast that looked like a rhinoceros on steroids and a sleek creature like an oversized tiger with webbing between its limbs appeared on the screen.

"The first one is a monongulate and the second one is a panthera." S gestured to the two. "The panthera eats both meat and veggies. It likes to chase us around and eat us. The monongulate eats meat during mating season and when it's a baby..." He showed us a picture of the smallest, most adorable little creature that looked like a mix between a puppy, a kitten and a unicorn. "But then when it grows up, it switches to eating plants until mating season comes around. Both of them are nocturnal. Actually, it should be breeding season right now for the monongulate."

"And that eclipse that lasts six months." Yaya let out a weak laugh. "Isn't that great."

"They're not actually the most dangerous thing in the forest," S admitted. "These... well." He typed quickly, and another image popped onto the screen.

The creature looked like a human, as far as I could tell, and stunningly beautiful, if admittedly odd, with bright, luminescent white skin, glowing hair that fanned out in some invisible breeze and large eyes missing the whites. Its lips curved up in a kind, rosy smile. It wasn't the kind of beauty that's hot or that's cute, or even male or female, but alluring yet somewhat untouchable.

"That's a void siren." 6 sneered at the picture. "It's almost just like us, almost human, except it lacks any restraint. The void siren takes what it wants and it has no conscience. They're nothing more than psychopaths with pretty faces."

"And they like to eat humans." Yaya seemed dazed, entranced by the photograph.

"You could say that again." 5's voice was bitter and heated. "Every month, when the moon is full, they appear at the far boundaries of our camp and begin to sing. The voices worm their way into your head and make you desire them, calling for you until you go to them. Once you're in their grasp, there's nothing you can do, because you're gone forever."

I shivered, staring at the image. "Isn't there any way to stop them?"

"Not if they're hungry." R turned away from the void siren. "Their voices screw around with our technology and they're nearly undetectable on our eltargrams. For however long the full moon is out, the best we can do is keep any potentially dangerous things far from our reach, lock ourselves up together and then drown out their voices somehow until it stops. If we don't, we all go half mad trying to get to them."

"They're heartless, really," T said quietly. "Nothing more than beautiful monsters."

"That's awful." We finally tore our gaze away from the void siren and back to the gathered soldiers. S let the screen go dark, his expression unfathomable.

"You guys should get some food," he said finally. "Before all the bloogle-nut jelly gets eaten."

* * *

The mood had lightened considerably as the sun slipped from the sky, leaving only the midnight darkness of a moonless sky. Rather than turn in immediately, some of the soldiers lingered in the Hall, gathered close at the tables to boast and brag, to sing and tell stories. T, blushing as the gathered called for him, sung in his soft, gentle voice, weaving the tragic tale of two lovers who were doomed for crossing a forbidden line. R gave a hilarious rendition of her squadron during a recon mission when a particularly loud bird had expelled a bloodcurdling scream in her ear. S chose a ghost story.

"...and as he watched, the monster reached out with its sharp claws, breathing heavily." S inhaled and exhaled noisily, breathing heavily and smiling gleefully at the look of utter terror on Yaya's face. "It stretched its long fingers and trailed one claw down his cheek, and it opened its mouth, leaning forward and—"

"Raaah!" S yelped, startling all of us as he tumbled backwards. X stood behind him, giggling as he flailed his arms wildly and his eyes bugged. "Got you!"

"X," T admonished fondly, "that wasn't very nice."

"Don't scold her," 6 said, rolling her eyes and laughing. "It was hilarious and he totally deserves it."

"That's payback for pouring cold gard sauce all over my breakfast," X said smugly.

S spluttered, scrambling to his feet and chasing after her. "I'll get you for this, X!"

子 rolled her eyes. "Funny how X is only like nineteen, but she's probably twice as responsible as S, who's twenty-four."

"Almost twenty, actually." 5 smiled slightly. "Her birthday's next half-moon. Most of us at Base are at least over twenty-five, if not thirty," he explained at our confusion. "S is pretty young, but he's an excellent fighter and he got moved up a couple age sections before he showed up."

"X is just young, even if she is pretty mature for her age." 6 shrugged. A short distance away, S gave a cry as a handful of coconut jelly hit him in the face. "Well, most of the time."

"They make a cute couple," Yaya commented. "You think?"

The group went quiet. "...X and S?" 子 was uncomfortable. "Er... X is kind of off limits."

"Oh." Yaya blinked in surprise. "Off limits? Why?"

"A couple reasons, really." R shrugged. "First off, she's in training to become an officer. Relationships with anyone are kind of looked down on during training time since they could become distractions, and she'll be in training for a couple more years since the main Head of Intelligence hasn't stepped down from his position. She isn't, well, isn't technically fully registered as a citizen of the Union, or a registered citizen of any group, really. Also, uh... there might be a couple bad consequences of being in a relationship with X."

"Oh. That makes sense, I guess." I cocked my head, frowning. "Why would she not be registered? Is she a foreigner, or something?"

"And why can't she be in a relationship?" Yaya pouted. "That seems a little unfair."

The silence grew awkward. "You guys ask a lot of questions, don't you?" R sighed. "It's because she's half void siren."

My jaw dropped. "...How?"

R raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Well, sometimes, when you get older, you start having these feelings. Sometimes those feelings make you want to stick parts of your body up somebody else's—"

"Well, no, yeah, but I mean—you said the void sirens—" I fumbled for words.

"Void sirens are similar to humans," 6 reminded me. "Thing is, most of them are so bloodthirsty they'd never even think twice about killing one of us. But X is living proof that there are worse monsters even among monsters. When Base was first being established, people were still looking for ways to fend off the void sirens. One of the ways people thought of was trying to make peace with them."

"But it turns out trying to make nice-nice with void sirens only gets you killed." 5 laughed humorlessly. "It worked for all of two weeks. Less than, I guess. Two weeks later is just when X's mother was dumped on our doorstep half-dead with a newborn in her arms and bleeding out slowly. She had what was left of the dignitaries we sent out in a sack." He shook his head bitterly. "We couldn't save her and she didn't last more than a few hours. We gave up trying after that."

I looked at X, who was now standing laughing with her arms crossed as S tried to tackle her but was held back by some invisible force. "Are void sirens telekinetic?"

"No, but it's possible that the combination of the genes from the two might have something to do with it. She's resilient, disciplined, and efficient, not to mention she's powerful, which is why she's already in a position to become a commanding officer at such a young age."

S made an utterly ridiculous expression, and fell forward suddenly as X began to laugh, eyes dancing and one hand covering her mouth. I put the image of the void siren together with the silver-eyed humans and could almost see how X was both. She was beautiful as well, except instead of the angelic perfection of a void siren, hers seemed, well... eerie. The void sirens were indescribable, but X, with the way her papery white skin could reveal deep blue veins where they were closest to the skin, the way her enormous eyes were almost frightening... X somehow managed to capture both the image of a sweet, innocent little girl and of some spirit that would appear in the darkness, beckoning you to follow before leading you off into the marshes to drown.

"I think maybe it's time for bed," R said finally, casting a sad look towards X. "It'll be curfew, soon, anyway. Yaya, aren't you bunking with me?"

"Oh—yeah!" Yaya followed after her, slightly flustered at the casual use of her name without the honorific by some virtual stranger. "You coming, Kukai?"

S got to his feet and tackled X, laughing evilly as he set to tickling her, practically sprawled across her. X laughed breathlessly, fending him off feebly and kicking at him. Both had wide grins spread across their faces. She seemed nothing like the calm, formal girl from before; instead, she seemed almost normal, like any other girl her age. The scene made me feel oddly sad.

"Kukai?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, I'm coming." I shook my head, hurrying after her. Behind me, the two laughed at some shared joke I thought vaguely that I'd never understand.

* * *

_X looked up at S as they sat up, hair mussed and eyes bright with a radiant smile stretched across her face as they sat on the floor. "You smell like bloogle-nuts."_

_S grinned, wiping at the side of his face and dragging his hand down her cheek, covering it in vivid green jelly. "That's your fault, stupid."_

_"I know," she said smugly. "You deserved it." The two laughed. S didn't withdraw his hand, and the giggles died from X's throat as she stared up at S, eyes wide and yearning. Almost absently, she lifted a hand to mirror his, tracing her fingertips against his cheek. His breath hitched, and he watched her, silver eyes darkening._

_X slid closer as her hands lifted to hold his face, lips feathering lightly across his. S closed his eyes, one hand cradling her lower back and the other slipping behind to cup her neck. He drew her close, kissing her gently with his eyes squeezed shut, almost like touching her hurt him, almost like he didn't really want to let go. He did, after a time, pulling back to rest his forehead against hers._

_"You know we can't."_

_"I know." Her voice was soft, sad. "But I wanted to pretend, if only for a moment."_

_With that, X pulled away, disappearing like smoke, already far from his reach. S watched her go before leaving the Hall himself, pressing his knuckles to his lips as if trying to keep her touch from leaving him behind._

* * *

_Please review!_


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